Worth The Wait
by mickelus
Summary: My first attempt at writing fanfiction. I went a little outside cannon for the end of season 6 then went a completely different direction after season seven. I include some elements from the comics, but it's mostly all original. Mainly takes place in Seattle, Washington. Many characters will be making at least a cameo appearance. There will be drama, action, mystery, and romance.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

Tara gazed across the crowded room at the object of her desire. She had been waiting for this day to arrive but now that it was here she didn't know what to do. Once she started down that road things would never be the same again and she liked things as they were too but she wanted something more.

She was surrounded in her life by friends, good friends, who were really more like family. There was Xander, the goofball, yet caring and protective like a big brother that she wished she'd had growing up. There was Willow, her ex-girlfriend/sister Wiccan. It really was too bad that they couldn't work things out between them after Willow had gotten over her magic addiction. Then there was Buffy and Anya, they were like the siblings that everyone has. They tease you sometimes and say things that are outright mean, whether they mean to or not but always have your back no matter what.

Finally there was Dawn, the birthday girl. She, like Tara, was part of the group along with the others. Yet it always seemed like there were just some things that the two of them didn't fit into.

It really went all the way back to when Tara had first met Willow. Will had tried to let Tara in and make her feel like part of the group. And the others were more than generous in welcoming her, a stranger into their world.

But somehow Tara always found herself sitting off away from the group talking with Dawn, who was deemed too young for involvement with the Scooby's at the time or helping her study. The two girls quickly became great friends seeing each other often as equals despite their difference in age.

Dawn was wise beyond her years. She'd had to grow up fast after her mom died. And with her sister being the Slayer there was no shortage of bad guys and dangers to be dealt with. Eventually both she and Tara were fully accepted Scooby Gang members.

Tara was useful for her magic since Willow tried to abstain from using it for fear of falling back into her addiction and abuse of dark magic. And Dawn was like a junior Watcher who was already able to translate ancient Samarian text at just fifteen.

Then there was Dawn's sophomore year of high school, the battle with the First Evil and the potential Slayers flooding the town. She'd had to sit on the sidelines and watch as others took center stage and gained the attention of her sister, who was supposed to be there for her when their mom passed away. No doubt hard for a fifteen year old but she'd held back her emotions and opinions like an adult. Choosing to focus on helping with as much as she could, whether that was studying their enemies or helping train the new arrivals.

She had proven herself as a great warrior in battle as well guarding one of the doorways with Xander in the last battle with The First and the Turok-Han vampires, killing several herself.

'Yes,' Tara thought to herself, 'I should tell her. But if she doesn't feel the same way I risk our friendship. Goddess dammit! Why does love have to be so damned complicated?' Tara watched in her usual shy silence as everyone celebrated, unable to deny the anxiousness and fear she felt tying knots in her stomach.

Dawn looked across the room enjoying her party and caught Tara staring at her, as per usual, Dawn knew that the blonde wiccan had the hots for her. And with that knowledge had teasingly flirted with her over the last few years. She knew it was somewhat mean but she just couldn't help it.

She found herself staring back at Tara, caught in the witches beautiful blue eyes. She couldn't deny that she had feelings for the older woman. Feelings that she had held in check for years. She came back to reality then smiled and winked at the woman on the other side of the room.

The shy witch instantly blushed and quickly turned her gaze toward the floor, glancing up now and again. How was she even going to start this conversation? 'Hey, Dawn now that you're 18 and I won't get arrested wanna go out sometime?' She needed to talk to Dawn but didn't want the conversation to give the girl the wiggins. 'Tonight isn't the right time,' she said to herself, 'looks like it'll be just me and my good friend the cold shower again.'

"What's up Tara-bear? You enjoying the party?" Tara jumped a little; she hadn't noticed Xander walk up behind her.

"Oh, yeah it's great." The witch replied to the one eyed man. "I c-can't believe little Dawn is grown up. Three years g-goes by fast."

"Yes. Yes it does." Xander said somewhat to himself. He knew something was coming between Tara and Dawn. He'd seen it all before when Tara had first started coming around, the way she and Willow would look at each other, their body language. He knew it before Will did and he could see it now between these two girls. It amazed him sometimes, the things he noticed from the outside that seemed obvious and yet all parties involved remained either oblivious or denied the truth.

It was times like this that he enjoyed his "gift" he would sometimes subtly involve himself, but never so anyone would know. Mostly he'd just stand on the sidelines and enjoy the show.

"Well have fun." He said as he walked away and Tara could've sworn she heard him add, "Take a chance shy girl, you might be surprised." She stared after him as he lost himself in the crowd and thought to herself, "how could he possibly…" She shook her head knowing the answer before she finished the question. "There's no secrets with you are there, Xander?" she mumbled to the air.

Willow walked up and sat next to her friend. "Hi Tara, can you believe our little Dawnie is all grown up?"

"Hi Will, I know. Time goes by so f-fast doesn't it?" was Tara's reply.

"What were you and Xanman talking about?"

"Nothing much, he just c-came over to say 'hi'."

"Yeah he's become a man of few words ever since Caleb took his eye…" Willow trailed off, both of them remembering that dreadful battle where Caleb had effortlessly killed two potentials and then grabbed Xander "the one who sees everything" and gouged out his left eye. Spike tackled Caleb a second too late, though he'd probably saved Xanders life (likely the reason he didn't get angry anymore when talking about the bleach blonde vamp).

"Yeah that was a b-b-bad day. He seems like he d-does alright though. I m-mean he runs the whole Slayer organization now, so at least he's keeping busy in the f-f-fight against evil." Tara said breaking the silence. "Didn't I hear something about you starting a c-coven in Portland?"

Willow looked at her friend somewhat in amazement, "Wow! I'm kinda surprised you know about that! We haven't been officially recognized by the Witch's Council yet. However, Zeera herself told me that we should receive our welcoming soon. So I'd been trying to keep it all on the dl till I knew for sure. How did you find out?"

"Oh, well I w-was m-m-meditating and r-reached out t-t-to see who was out there to t-talk to and I sensed Zeera. S-so I asked about y-y-you. I'm s-s-sorry if I learned something I w-w-wasn't supposed t-to." The blonde witch answered nervously. A little worried she'd maybe upset her friend by finding this out, so her stutter was more pronounced.

"It's okay. I was actually going to tell you about it today. I think we're gonna throw a party once we are official. I hope you can come and I'll let you know the details as we get them hashed out. Oh, I should probably tell the others. I'll see you later Tara. It was good to talk to you."

"You too."

Meanwhile during Tara's conversation with Willow people had begun to file past Dawn giving her their final "happy birthdays". She smiled and thanked each one of them as they left. Leaving her, Buffy, Willow, Xander, and Tara. Just as she was about to close the door she heard a familiar voice ask, "Aren't you going to invite us in, Lil Bit?" She couldn't believe it. Standing before her was Spike, Angel, Giles, Cordelia, and even Oz along with a woman who Dawn could only assume was his wife, Bayamara, holding their new baby.

"Oh my gosh, Guys! I can't believe you came! Please come in!" She said and as they filed in, the others stared in momentary surprise. Then everyone began talking at once with the "good to see you's" and the "I missed you's" and the "nice to meet you's". And thus began an unplanned second party.

Later on when everyone had calmed down somewhat and all were reminiscing over past times (mostly their various battles with evil and averting apocalypses). Dawn currently holding Oz's son Kelden said, "I still can't believe you guys are all here right now."

"Of course, we wouldn't miss this." Came the fervent reply.

"Yeah Oz wouldn't quit talking until we were at the airport once he'd heard your birthday was coming." Bayamara responded.

Everyone stared in disbelief at the idea that Oz would say more than one sentence at any given time. Then the room exploded into laughter. The group continued talking through the night and on into the morning, even Oz and Tara chiming in now and then.

When the sunlight began to peek through the windows they finally realized just how late it really was. Spike and Angel, at the offer of Buffy, had decided to stay till nightfall. Giles informed them all, sadly, that he had to head back to England right away.

"Are you sure you can't stay for a few days?" asked Buffy hopefully.

"I wish I could but I had to leave Faith in charge of my shop. And it's not that I don't trust her, it's just that when it comes to anything other than fighting she's rather…how shall I say it?...Clumsy." answered the Brit, "Oh yes," he added turning to Dawn and handing her an envelope, "we didn't know what to get you so this is from me and Faith. Happy birthday and hopefully it won't be so long till I see you next." And with that he said his goodbyes and took his leave. Leaving Dawn holding a birthday card signed by both him and Faith.

Oz and Bayamara said that they'd be staying at a nearby hotel in town for a few days before heading back to Tibet. Buffy began assigning people places to catch up on some much needed sleep.

Dawn grabbed the shy blonde witch by the hand dragging her upstairs, "Come on Tara you can sleep in my room." Leaving the others to their own devices.

The birthday girl and her friend sat on her bed talking and just avoiding sleep in general. "So did you enjoy your birthday?" Tara asked, managing to not stutter.

"Yeah I really did. It was a great party. And I was so excited when I saw the others waiting for me on the porch. Did you have anything to do with that?"

Tara looked up with a slight smile on her face, "Yes, W-Willow and I coordinated and g-got word to everyone. We knew it w-would make you really happy t-t-to see everybody."

Dawn hugged Tara tightly "Thank you so much that was a great gift! I guess I'll have to thank Willow tomorrow."

She laid her head on Tara's shoulder with a contented sigh. Today had been wonderful. One of the best days of her life up to this point and she could sense that Tara had been waiting to talk to her all day. She sat back up saying, "Ok Tara I know you've been watching me all day, what's on your mind?"

Tara stiffened a bit at Dawn's question. She turned to look at the girl...no…not girl…the young woman, whom she loved dearly. She looked down at her hands quietly thinking for what seemed like an eternity. She'd actually planned on waiting a few more days, mainly to try and practice what she wanted to say.

She decided to try the straightforward approach, "You remember w-when I took you out for m-m-movies and milkshakes, and you asked me if Willow and I were ever g-g-going to g-get back together?"

Dawn just nods.

"Then when we c-came b-b-back and no one was home. So we sat on the couch watching TV, and you f-fell asleep with your head on m-my lap. Well I w-w-watched you sleep for quite a while b-before falling asleep myself. It was that n-night that I r-realized I would never get back t-t-together with Willow."

"What are you trying to say, Tara? I don't know what you mean."

"That was the night I fell in love with you!" Tara nearly shouted and then worried how Dawn would react to that. She began rambling, "I-I mean…well yeah I fell in love with you…a-and I'm still i-in love with you…I've been w-w-waiting so long t-to t-tell you b-b-but I've always been worried that you w-w-wouldn't feel the same." Tara continued, feeling tears of fear of the unknown starting to well up in her eyes. "Even n-now I d-don't know how you're gonna react, b-b-but I had to t-t-tell you. I just c-c-couldn't hold it in any more…"

Before she could say another word, Dawn reached out and lifted the witch's chin kissing her. It was a long, slow, gentle kiss. Tara's eyes opened wide in surprise then closed again as she enjoyed the taste of Dawn's amazing kiss.

A short time later Tara pulled away and said with desire obvious in her eyes, "Are you sure about this D-D-Dawn? Cause I d-don't want to just have an amazing n-night or two, I w-w-want the dating and the romance too. I d-don't want to be your one n-night experiment." Tara turned her face toward the floor again, expecting an answer she really didn't want to hear and not wanting Dawn to see the fear in her eyes.

"Tara." Answered Dawn in a soothing and caring voice. "My dear sweet Tara. If that's your way of asking me out then you get an enthusiastic yes! And to answer your question, yes I'm sure. I know how I feel about you. I've loved you since before you and Willow were officially dating. Remember that day the gang went to the magic shop and they found the dead guy? They almost literally carried me out of the building. I think that was your first official Scooby Gang outing too. Anyway you sat on the curb next to me and talked with me like I was an adult. You were my first girl crush."

Dawn reached out to take Tara's hands in her own and continued. "Now, back then I didn't know if I was straight or gay, or bi, I was crushing on you, Xander, and Justin Timberlake. I do know that in Xander's case the crush went away but I have nearly the same love for him as I do for Buffy. However, in your case, my crush just kept growing. You don't know how hard it was for me to act like I wanted you and Willow to get back together." She leaned in and kissed the still surprised woman on the cheek. "So if you want to take things slow and make sure it's right then I understand. I've waited a few years, I can wait another week or so."

Tara looked up smiling widely with an icy fire burning in her blue eyes as tears of joy rolled down her face. "H-H-How about dinner a-and a movie on F-Friday?" She asked still nervous for some reason.

"I would love that." Replied Dawn. "Now we should get some sleep."

They curled up embracing each other tightly under the covers of Dawn's bed. As they were drifting off, they could've swore they heard Xander chuckle and say, "Well it's about damn time, you two."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Dawn could barely focus throughout the next week of school. Her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of her data with Tara. She would find her mind drifting off in the middle of class only to be brought back to reality her face flushed from embarrassment when the teacher finally got her attention. Even so she would find herself drifting off again daydreaming about her upcoming date; it seemed to her as though Friday would never arrive.

When Dawn got home on Thursday she found Buffy waiting for her at the kitchen table. "Dawn I need to talk to you.

Dawn sat at the table across from her older sister thinking she knows what's coming. She had never had the "first date talk" cause really this was her first actual date. She'd had friends that she'd considered (at least for a couple hours) as boyfriends and girlfriends before, but nothing she considered actually dating. She was glad her friends and family didn't know about those though, then she realized if what Tara and she had turned out to be as serious as she hoped it would she couldn't lie to Tara about her past relationships…"Great, now I have to figure out the right time to tell her about that."

The sisters just sat in silence. Buffy and Dawn hadn't said much to each other since Dawn had told her about her and Tara's date plans. Buffy had to admit she had been a little freaked to find out her sister was attracted to girls, let alone their shy friend. She was glad that she hadn't actually freaked out when she first heard, she wasn't homophobic or anything, her best friend since high school was gay, it had just been a shock to her initially.

"Honestly Dawnie I don't even really know what to say…mom was much better at this type of thing…I know you're a smart and capable young woman who can look out for herself…And it's not like I'm expecting Tara to take advantage of you or anything. Even so I feel the need to say something, call it 'big sister instinct'. I just want to make sure that you don't take things too fast cause I care about you…both of you."

"I will be Buffy. You don't have to worry…but I'm glad to know you care." Dawn replied reassuring her older sibling. "So how are you handling this anyway? I mean the whole finding out your sister is gay."

"I've gotta admit I was a little freaked at first…cause it was kind of a surprise…but I love you you're my sister and whoever you end up with nothings gonna change that." Buffy answered, trying not to cry as her eyes welled up with tears.

"I love you too big sis." Said Dawn quickly hugging Buffy as a rogue tear ran down her cheek.

Tara paced nervously in her dorm room she was supposed to pick Dawn up in a couple of hours and she still didn't even know what she was going wear. She was so nervous it felt like her the sandwich she'd had for lunch was doing a break dance in her stomach. She sat on the foot of her bed to try and calm down. She couldn't remember ever being this nervous, even with Willow. After a while she realized she just wouldn't get over her nervousness and she began getting herself ready for a night she had been hoping would come for a long time.

Meanwhile Dawn was similarly occupied tossing items of clothing out of her out of her closet she grabs two outfits holding each up in front of her. The first one a skimpy black leather dress "Hi, I'm an enormous slut!" She held up the second, a full-length long sleeved floral dress "Would you like a copy of the Watchtower?" She tossed both onto the ever growing pile of rejects. There wasn't much left in her closet and she was running out of time. She really wanted to look good for Tara but she had no idea where to start.

"Doing a little spring cleaning Dawnie?" Buffy asked with a smirk on her face leaning against the door jam.

Dawn looked over at her sister with irritation in her eyes.

Buffy realizing her baby sister wasn't in a joking mood at the moment took a few steps into the room, "let me guess, you're having the typical first date "nothing to wear" conundrum." Dawn just nodded still mildly annoyed at her sister's earlier teasing. "Well come on then I'll help you decide." Buffy said standing and started rummaging through the pile of clothes Dawn had already gone through and rejected. Stopping when she saw that Dawn was still just sitting on the end of the bed, "Come on Dawn, Tara's gonna be here to get you in about an hour right?" Dawn got up deciding to accept her sister's help, even if it was begrudgingly.

Dawn was just starting to put on her makeup when there was a knock at the door. Dawn started rushing until Buffy placed a hand on her shoulder, "Don't rush Dawnie. You want to look good for her right? Then don't rush, I'll get the door." And with that Buffy went to the front door and let Tara inside.

Buffy and Tara sat in the living room in somewhat awkward silence. Tara was still unsure how the slayer felt about her and Dawn's date, but decided not to bring it up cause she was letting it happen. Buffy finally broke the silence, "So what are you planning for tonight?"

"Oh…um…I-I think w-w-we are going see a m-movie first. Then g-g-get something to eat. After that it's k-k-kinda up in the air, we might go t-to the Bronze but I dunno it'd be up t-t-to her." Tara answered her stutter betraying her nervousness.

Buffy nodded, "I know I don't have to tell you to be careful, but I will anyway. Just remember we do live on the Hellmouth so be on your guard, especially now that the sun's down. Cause if anything happens to her something will happen to you too, understand?"

Tara swallowed hard and unable to speak simply nodded slowly at the slayer's poorly veiled threat. Just as the silence was about to fall around them again they saw Dawn coming down the stairs. Tara quickly stood and started to move toward the stairs but stopped in her tracks as she took in Dawn's outfit. She was wearing a pair of comfortable yet stylish black sneakers with a pair of tight black jeans and a red tank top with a low yet not too revealing neckline capped off with her beautiful blue-green eyes and he soft brown hair cascading in waves past her shoulders. Tara was rendered completely speechless and unable to move by the beauty before her, she was just happy she'd remembered how to breathe.

Dawn was similarly taken in by Tara, the blonde witch who would always blush whenever she was complimented about anything and didn't think she knew anything about being sexy. Well she could have fooled Dawn with her conservative and stylish brown, silk, long-sleeved shirt on top of a pair of brown form hugging slacks and brown dress shoes, with her dirty-blonde hair pulled back into a loose ponytail. Tara was so beautiful simply for not trying to be.

"Wow!" Tara proclaimed finally breaking the silence. "You look a-amazing!"

"Thank you. You don't look bad yourself." Replied the young brunette making her way down the last couple steps. Upon reaching the Dawn linked her arm through Tara's and as they made their way to the witches car Buffy called out to them from the house "Bye guys! Have a good time." An unbidden tear forming in her eye. 'Wow.' She thought to herself, 'My baby sister's all grown up!'

The two girls sat at their table in the restaurant talking about the movie they'd seen and just enjoying each other's company. The young waitress walked over with their drinks setting Tara's iced tea in front of her and Dawn's chocolate shake before her.

"Good God!" Tara exclaimed. "No matter how many times we come to this place I'm always surprised by how big their shakes are."

Dawn smiled at her date. "Remember the first time we came here? You made me promise to eat something green when I got home."

"Oh yeah, I swear the milkshakes have just gotten bigger since then." Tara answered her heart warming at Dawn's smile cause her to return with her own smile. 'Damn, how did I get so lucky?' She asked herself.

They continued talking throughout their meal, discussing the movie along with several other topics. When they had finished eating Tara asked, "So what do you want to do now?"

"Well I haven't had a chance to check out that new club The Bronze. How weird is it that there's a club called The Bronze up here in Seattle? Apparently it's an accessory that every Hellmouth should have." Dawn answered as they stood to leave.

"Alright the lady has spoken. To the new Bronze it is." Said Tara playfully mocking as Dawn took her hand in her own.

After taking care of their bill the duo made their way out to the car. It wasn't a long drive and soon they were parked outside the club. "Wow it even looks the same." Tara noted.

"Yeah it does, I wonder if it has the same owner as the one back in Sunnydale." Said Dawn a quizzical look on her face. Then her expression changed as the women locked arms and began making their way into the building. "I guess it doesn't matter." Dawn continued resting her head momentarily on Tara's shoulder, causing the witches heart to skip a beat. "I'll be too preoccupied with you to care about my surroundings anyway."

The interior of the club was similar to the Bronze they knew and loved but different enough that it truly seemed new. The lighting was dim and there was an unknown yet decent band playing on the stage, and there was still an underlying odor of warm bodies dancing to the music. But the biggest difference was the overwhelming aroma of coffee. "God is that the only thing they drink here?" Dawns asked rhetorically. "It seems wherever you go in Seattle your nose is assaulted by either coffee or fish."

"I know what you mean." Tara replied smiling up at the taller woman. "Though I have to say I prefer the coffee smell to the fish smell."

"So do you want to dance?" Asked Dawn.

Tara almost declined; she didn't really like dancing to fast music. But she changed her mind when she saw the almost pleading look on her Dawnie's face. "Now how could I possibly say no when you look at me like that?" Tara asked with a laugh as she took Dawn's hand and was led out to the dance floor.

"Do you have eyes on her?" Came the call over the radio.

Rory had been tracking the girls since they'd left the slayers house. Though his target was the slayers sister he also had intel on all friends that they had in this town. "Aye, I see her she and the witch are dancing." He replied pressing the button on his comm.

"Okay don't lose her the boss really wants to hurt the slayer, starting with little sis."

"Don't worry mate, I'm damn good at my job. That's why you're boss hired me."

"Alright, report back with any further developments. Everything's set, don't let them fuck it up or else it'll be your ass on the line." The voice finished menacingly.

"Fucking assholes!" Rory muttered to himself while turning back to the task at hand.

He could see everything in the building from his perch in the rafters. He hated having to deal people like that. But it came with the territory of being a mercenary. And it paid the bills so he couldn't complain too much.

"So this is your new girlfriend, huh Tara?" He asked the emptiness around him. "Got to say I approve she's a fine lass no doubt, and the sister the slayer Buffy to boot."

After about an hour and a half of dancing the girls made their way out of the club. "They're on the move." Rory spoke into his comm pushing the send button.

"Rodger that Operative O'Brien," came the confirmation. "Remember follow them and inform us of any deviations to the route. And for God's sake don't let them see you following!"

"Copy that!" He replied irately. It seriously pissed him off when they talked to him like an amateur.

Meanwhile Tara and Dawn were chatting in the car and had no idea that anyone in the world had any plans concerning them. When they had driven for a while and finally got back outside the city limits, just 20 minutes from Dawn and Buffy's place, one of the tires blew. Unbeknownst to them they had run over a spike strip.

Tara and Dawn both screamed in surprise at noise and sudden erratic movement of the car. However Tara was able to maintain control and get her injured car safely to the side of the road. The two women sat in silence shock still apparent on both their faces as they tried to regain their composure. Tara was the first to speak reaching over comfortingly covering Dawn's hand with her own. "Are you ok Honey?" She asked worry obvious in her voice.

Dawn looked over at the other woman, fear still visible in her eyes but that left as soon as she felt Tara's soft hand on hers. "Yeah she said," voice still somewhat shaky, "just a little freaked is all." She finished forcing a half smile.

"Well, I guess we better survey the damage." Said the blonde with a sigh.

They both got out and circled the car inspecting for damages as well as they could in the moonlight. Aside from the rear passenger-side tire all seemed well with the car. "Goddammit!" Tara yelled in frustration, "Why did this have to happen tonight?"

Dawn placed her arm around the upset woman's shoulders to try and calm her. "Well at least we're okay. Do you have a spare?"

"I hope so." Tara replied resting her head on the younger girl's shoulder.

Just then they heard a noise behind them. They turned as five men dressed in black tactical gear began to approach. Tara stepped forward slightly placing herself between Dawn and the commandos.

"Hey guys look dykes in distress!" Exclaimed one of the dark clad figures as they continued to slowly inch closer.

"Yeah and check out the blonde. Thinks herself butch." Said another as the others chuckled.

Tara was beginning to get seriously pissed off at this point. "You obviously don't know who you are FUCKING WITH!" She yelled, in the same instant her eyes going completely black as she placed a barrier around herself, Dawn and the car.

"Dammit!" Yelled one of the commandos, as they all fired their tranquilizer gun a second too late, their darts bouncing harmlessly off the barrier. "How come none of our intel said the witch-bitch could do that?!"

"Oops, did I leave that out?" asked a mocking voice in an Irish brogue that Tara recognized but couldn't exactly place.

Rory was standing just a few feet behind the squad, laughing at them as he stood leisurely with his hands behind his back. "I didn't realize Mithos hired such incompetent assholes. Hahaha! God I love jerking the bad guys around. But sadly I think our fun must come to an end at least for now…I'm not guessing the five of you would want to just cut your losses and get the hell out of here. Because that offer is currently on the table, but it's a limited time offer. The upset begin to turn toward him, tranq guns at the ready. "Good. I was hoping you would choose the fun way!"

The next few moments were kind of a blur to Dawn and Tara as the newcomer sprinted the last few feet between him and the wannabe soldiers, producing two steel, telescoping batons. As he made contact with the first commando the others dropped their guns which were useless at this close range pulling out their own batons. The first one fell quickly from a blow to the head as he wasn't prepared. The rest began circling the mysterious hero as he stood ready for any attack. They attacked in pairs, the first to striking out high, left, front and low, rear, right and were easily parried. The commandos continued attacking in this manner for a time sometimes altering their pattern until one made a mistake and Rory took the opportunity to go on the offensive.

The opponent to his front, right missed completely throwing himself off balance. The dual-wielding fighter capitalized on this opening striking first to the back of the knee with a bone crunching hit causing the off balance man to cry out in pain and collapse to the ground. As he was falling he received a second blow to the base of his neck, knocking him out. The young man continued his attack moving to the next commando, first disarming him then rendering him unconscious with a high kick to the jaw, breaking bones where his foot connected. One attempted to flee but was struck in the back of the skull by a magically hurled rock, Courtesy of Tara.

That left Rory with the last and most adept of the attackers. They circled each other for a time sizing one another up with the commando bending down momentarily to retrieve one of his fallen comrade's batons hoping to even the odds a bit. The last two warriors clashed in frenzied yet controlled combat neither giving any ground. Just constantly slash, parry, slash, parry. Both began to tire somewhat. Having had enough of the back and forth and getting quite bored Rory waited and as his opponent swung attacking from both sides he dropped his own weapons grabbing his opponents wrists and driving his head forward head-butting the black clad figure. Then placing his hands behind the dazed man's head he pulled down with his hands while driving up with his knee to connect with the commando's skull, incapacitating him.

"Whew! Now that was a blast!" Rory exclaimed pausing to catch his breath. "Are you two alright?" He asked turning toward the women by the side of the road. Taking a small step in their direction.

"We're f-fine." Answered Tara most of her adrenaline inspired confidence now gone. "A-and I would a-a-appreciate you telling me who the hell you are b-before you t-take another step."

"What Tara? You don't recognize your pal Rory?" He asked sounding a bit hurt.

Tara was completely taken by surprise as she suddenly fully recognized the voice of her childhood friend. She immediately removed the barrier rushing over to the boy she had not seen since she had moved to Sunnydale.

"Wow Rory I can't believe it's really you!" she exclaimed as she put her arms around him in a tight hug which he happily returned.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N **From this point on the story is going to take on a slightly different feel. You may have noticed a change in chapter 2, this is because I had an idea while writing to make this more of a plot driven story than just to focus on Dawn and Tara's developing relationship, don't worry they are still going to be somewhat of a focal point but I want to expand the possibilities of the story. BTW for anyone who's wondering Rory is an original character of mine…I'll explain more when necessary cause well to quote River Song "Spoilers…"

**Chapter 3**

"So I take it the two of you know each other?" Dawn asked taking a tentative step forward.

"Oh yeah, Dawn this is Rory my friend from my hometown." Answered Tara pulling back from her embrace with her old friend as she introduced them to one another. Rory, Dawn, Dawn, Rory." She stepped over next to Dawn wrapping her arm around the still shaken young woman "So what are you doing here anyway? I mean obviously aside from saving us. Last I heard you were fighting a gang of demons in Japan."

"All in good time mo chailin. First I think we need to get that tire fixed and then get to the slayer's house, cause it involves her too." Rory explains shifting his gaze to the wounded vehicle. "I see you traded up from that shitty granny-mobile you used to drive. Funny never pictured you driving a muscle car though, always figured you for a Japanese tuner. Nice Mustang though!"

As the trio retrieve the spare tire and jack from the trunk Rory tries to strike up a conversation to calm everyone's nerves. "So Dawn, you're a California girl right? So how do you like being up here in the Pacific Northwest?"

"Yep born and raised in LA and Sunnydale. But I have to say I don't mind being up here at all, it can be a bit…um…damp at times but it's beautiful."

"I like the way you think Dawn, damp but beautiful, that's good."

"Okay. I have to ask, were you born in America Rory?" Asked Dawn a bit nervously hoping her question didn't offend the man.

Rory removed the tire and while handing it to Tara, who in turn passed him the one without holes in it, gave Dawn a reassuring smile. "Yes I was born here, actually in a town about an hour and a half south of here. But me mum and da were born in Ireland."

"Cool." Dawn said as Tara and she place the flat tire in the trunk along with the jack whilst Rory finished tightening the wheel nuts.

"Well that should take care of that issue. Now if you ladies will wait a moment I'll get my car and we can be off. By the way sorry if this totally ruins your date."

"What?! How did you know we were on a date?" Dawn asked a bit perplexed while Tara just stood quietly, fidgeting a bit still feeling the effects of adrenaline from a few moments ago.

"Well first remember I grew up with Tara, I was actually the first person to know she was gay, so I know her pretty well and your so her type. Secondly she's been talking to me off and on over the last couple years telling me the latest news of her "secret" crush." As he finished his explanation Tara stared at the ground feeling her face getting warm.

"Tara you talked about me? That's so sweet!" Dawn said placing her hand under the witches chin making her raise her head as Dawn planted a kiss on her cheek, right in front of Rory, which caused her to turn another shade of red.

"We'd better move on before she dies of embarrassment!" His comment brought Tara swung her head up to glare at him.

Tara and her date got back in their car. "Well at least our date isn't completely ruined. I was taking you home any way. I mean not taking you home! I mean we were headed back to your place! Argh! I don't mean that either! I keep saying it wrong!" Tara glanced over to Dawn who had a small smile on her face struggling to keep herself from laughing out loud.

"Don't worry babe I know what you meant." Said the young woman placing a reassuring hand on Tara's knee. "By the way I had an amazing time tonight. And you never know." She added as she brought her head closer to Tara's until she was whispering in the blonde's ear. "After all, the night is still young." This of course caused Tara's face to turn red once more while simultaneously she felt a twinge of anticipation of what might be to come.

Tara pulled her car up to the Summers' residence, parking her mustang on the side of the street followed soon after by Rory in a car whose brand she didn't recognize. It was a metallic blue slightly boxy looking, right-side drive car with a badge on the grill that read GTR.

Tara and Dawn exited their car and were met on the walkway by the young man who, now that there was better lighting, Dawn could see had black hair, bright blue-green eyes, and nicely tanned skin. He appeared to be about Xander's height perhaps a little taller, no more than 6'3" she assumed but had a build closer to that of Angel's, though she had to say the man before he appeared to be a bit more muscular than the soulful vampire. When they reached the door Dawn opened it inviting her two companions in after her.

Buffy was in the living room talking to Willow when they heard the car doors. Followed closely by footsteps on the porch. "Sounds like Dawn and Tara are back." She said glancing back at her best friend since high school. The duo stood to meet the expected visitors in the entry way. They were a bit stunned when a third person followed Tara and Dawn across the threshold. Buffy's instinct was to attack first ask question later. As she started to move into her natural fighting stance she was stopped by Willow's hand on her shoulder. The red head shook her head slightly, she recognized the newcomer from when she'd gone on a trip with Tara to visit her former girlfriend's hometown, where she had met Rory.

After proper introductions were made Rory set about telling the women why he had been contacted by the would-be kidnappers.

**3 Months Earlier Tokyo, Japan**

A lone foreigner sits at the bar in a downtown club in Tokyo, he is enjoying the music and taking a drink every now and then from the bottle of beer before him. It was a local brand and didn't have the same comforting familiarity as would a Coors Light, or a Bud. Oh sure they have those available in the bar, for the tourists who were willing to pay an arm and a leg for it.

He scanned the bar reading auras and faces. There were a few humans with above average power, possibly witches just starting out, as well as a couple demons scattered around, the friendly kind though, nothing he need concern himself with. The last rays of the sun were just beginning to dip below the horizon as he finished the last swig of his beer, time to go to work.

Several hours later the young man is making his way through a back alley headed toward his apartment. He'd gathered the information he needed and dusted a few bloodsuckers in the process. As his apartment complex loomed before him he paused, not wanting to turn in for the night just yet, he detoured to a nearby park to soak in the natural beauty of the earth in the midst of this concrete jungle.

Earth, grass, trees such was the source of his power. He drew strength from it, it healed him when he was injured, and in turn he lived to defend it. As he walked through the park he felt the energy seeping up from the ground charging his body by way of the intricate Celtic knot tattoo which ran from the heel of his right foot up his leg to his torso where it wove across his right peck looping up onto his shoulder and working its way down his arm ending, if you can say a Celtic knot ends, on the back of his right arm. Anyone who happened to see him would probably either freak out or be very enthralled because as power was drawn into him it caused the tattoo to glow a faint white.

The main purpose of the power granted him by the Earth was to heal himself and others and give him superior strength in battle, as well as unending stamina as long as he was in contact with the ground. However through the years of knowledge passed down to him through shared memories from his ancestors he knew many bindings and wards that were very useful against enemies that weren't harmed by normal physical methods. Unlike witches and warlocks his magic was inherently defensive. But druids don't survive by simply staying on the defense, they were masters at manipulating their own bindings as well as bindings and spell used against the by others.

The young man walked alone through the park feeling the cool night air penetrate the light cotton t-shirt he wore. He thought as he strolled through the deserted park, of days gone by. Of his friends from his home town, many of whom no longer lived there. He was brought from his reminiscing by a sound behind him. _Dammit!_ He thought to himself, _I thought I lost that guy._ The man had been following him, though not very quietly, since he left the bar. "So are you just going to stay there in the fucking shadows? Or are you going to be polite and introduce yourself before I rip that worthless head off your shoulders?"

He heard a gasp followed hastily by a voice with a British accent, "No need for such violence," As a shady figure stepped into the bright light provided by the full moon. "Are you Rory O'Brien?" he asked constantly wringing his hand together.

Rory didn't answer immediately as he quickly examined the stranger's aura. He didn't appear to be much of a threat though not so weak as he made people assume; he had power but used it sparingly, preferring to avoid confrontation and strike when his opponents back was turned. Rory decided to continue in a cautious manner. "That depends on who you're working for." He answered flatly. "And what they want with me."

"Well I suppose the polite thing would be to first introduce myself." Said the man with a somewhat friendly smile. "My name is Ethan Rayne, and I am currently working for a powerful individual named Mithos."

Rory just stood there staring at Ethan with his head cocked to one side as though contemplating whether or not he should kill the Brit.

Seeing that he wasn't going to get any sort of response Ethan continued. "Now word has reached us that you are considered the best when it comes to dealing with beings of…how shall we say…extraordinary abilities. Any way this is your assignment should you choose to accept the job," he continued, tossing Rory a large envelope, "and it is in your best interest to take it."

At this Rory's eyes filled with barely contained rage, _is this piece of shit seriously threatening me?_

Upon seeing the look on the young mercenary's face Ethan raised his hand defensively, "Hey don't shoot the messenger. I'm just conveying what I was told."

Rory slowly nods, "I think I want to meet this Mithos sometime, have a one on one…talk. Now get out of here while I'm still in a good mood!"

Walking away from the shadowy figure Rory made his way back to his apartment. He stared at the envelope for a moment before tossing it on his table. Half an hour and one hot shower later Rory came out of the bathroom feeling quite refreshed. The young man walked to his refrigerator and grabbing a Coke, finally sitting at the table soda in hand he opened the envelope and began to casually examine its contents. After just a few moments though he became thoroughly involved in the information on the papers. He recognized the names and photos from conversations with a childhood friend whom he hadn't seen in years.

Grinning and leaning back in his seat he wondered if this Mithos was just uninformed as to Rory's connection to his targets, or if it was some sort of trap. He sat there for nearly an hour mulling things over in his mind finally coming up with what he thought was the best course of action for him to take. The druid pulled out his cellphone and called the number provided for him in the packet.

Unsurprisingly his call was answered by Ethan Rayne. "Mr. O"Brien, I'm glad you called. How can I help you?"

"I'll take the job. Just tell your boss I have some business to finish up here first." Rory responded, hanging up as soon as he finished talking.

The next day the sun shone bright and warm through the windows of his apartment as he packed the few things he'd brought with him to The Land of the Rising Sun, which all fit in a military style green duffel bag. Once he was finished he looked around the small apartment that had been home to him for the past few months, it was strange yet he felt he might actually miss this place. Lifting the bag onto his shoulder he walked out the door, locked it, and then settled his bill with the manager, an old woman who had run the apartment complex with her now deceased husband since the seventies.

Keiko was a sweet old lady, though a little too attached to her sake, but she always had a story to tell and Rory was always one to enjoy a good story. They'd often sat talking for hours at a time about times gone by sipping sake, or tea, or tea with sake. Rory promised he'd write her often and visit when he could (a promise he would keep until she died). They parted with a hug, each with watery eyes but both too proud to let the tears fall.

"Anata no tabi no watashi no yūjin de anzendearu koto!" Keiko called to Rory as he left the building, which is to say "Be safe in your travels my friend."

Rory looked back one last time gave a smile and a wave. Then he was on his way, he still had a job to finish before he could head back to the states and he wanted to make full use of the daylight he had.

Last night following information he had gathered he'd tracked a gang of vampires to their nest. It was located in an old rundown warehouse in the middle of nowhere with no sewer access and no shade nearby for vamps to hide in. _Bloody foolish vamps._ He thought as he began preparing his one man assault. Working quickly and quietly his plan was ready to set in motion. He retreated to a safe distance, in case the vamps had something that could come after him in the daylight, and removed his shoes to have access to the Earth's power.

Resting his hand on the sword at his waist he raised the other and pressed a button on the remote. Having realized at the last that he had forgotten something he worked frantically to raise a shield around himself to keep her eardrums from being blown out by the concussive force caused from the explosives he had just set off. Luckily it was a simple matter and his binding was finished just as the shockwave reached him, however the blast was still strong enough to knock him on his ass.

Once the dust had settled and he had checked himself to ensure he was unharmed he set about examining the rubble for any bloodsuckers that may have survived the explosion and remained out of the sunlight. He came across two that were pinned under a slab of concrete and dusted them, as well as one he found hanging in a still intact corner from a piece of rebar.

**Seattle, Washington, USA;**

**Summers' Residence**

"So then I hopped on a plane and flew back to the states. Where I've been following you around." Rory said gesturing to Dawn, "As well as gathering as much info as I could on this Mithos guy." He finished his story leaving the ladies in the room somewhat dumbfounded.

Rory waited for a few moments to let his words sink in then asked, "So have any of you heard the name Mithos before?"

"No, but I can do some digging when I get back to Portland. And I call you with anything I find out." Willow said as she stood to leave. "It was nice to see you again Rory."

Dawn was the next to speak, "We'll get started on the researching tomorrow too. In the meantime would you like something to eat or drink Mr. Druid guy?"

"Thanks Dawn, yeah I could use something to eat."

"Kay I'll make us all some sandwiches then!" She replied cheerfully.

"I'll give you a hand." Tara said following the younger woman to the kitchen.

Rory and Buffy sat in silence for a time while Buffy's brain was still trying to process the information Tara's friend had provided. At first she didn't know what to think. Then she thought it couldn't be true, that Rory was lying. Then there was anger that someone would try to use her sister to get to her. Finally Buffy broke the silence trying to hide the worry in her voice, which was pointless as Rory could read the anger, pain, and fear in her aura. "How big of a threat are these guys?" She asked hoping to hear a good answer.

Rory shrugged, "I don't know for sure. If nothing else they have massive resources and can just hire people or buy them off like they tried with me. I wasn't able to get much information on them though I believe Mithos may have ties to a Richard Wilkins."

Buffy tensed at that name and her aura practically glowed with anger the instant she heard it.

"I'm guessing that you recognize the name."

"You could say that. He made my senior year of high school quite an experience."

"Ah yes, Willow told me about that when she and Tara came to see me."

Just then Dawn and Tara came from the kitchen with sandwiches and sodas for everyone. The quartet sat and ate and talked for a while comparing battle stories. Buffy hated to admit it but she kind of liked the newcomer, aside from the fact that he'd saved her sister and sister's girlfriend. He seemed to be legitimate and if he was Tara's friend then she figured he had to be trustworthy.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:** Same chapter just with some corrections to mistakes I noticed. And an explanation as to why Joyce's Jeep Cherokee is still around. (Thank you to Twin Who Likes To Travel for pointing that discrepancy out to me) Enjoy everyone!

**Chapter 4**

Tara woke the next morning to the smell of fresh coffee, she was slightly perplexed and a little worried until she remembered she had offered Rory her spare room to stay as long as he needed. She rolled out of bed putting on her fluffy bath robe and strode out into the living room/dining room of her small apartment. Rory was sitting at the table already dressed and ready for the day drinking a cup of coffee and going over some papers in a folder. Tara glanced at the clock on the wall, 8:15 a.m. Now she felt a little miffed at having been woken up this early on a Saturday morning.

"Good morning Tara, I took the liberty of making a pot of coffee. I was just going over what I was able to find out about Mithos and his people while I was "working for them." Rory said looking up from his studying of the papers before him, a slight grin on his face.

Tara poured herself a cup of the refreshing brew she sat herself at the table with her childhood friend still heartily breathing in the delicious smell of her coffee, "Mmmm, the nectar of the gods." Tara said chuckling at her silliness.

"So what have you got there?" She asked after taking a few sips from her cup.

"Not a hell of a lot sadly," Rory said setting the papers down in frustration, "Fucking hell, but they are good at covering their tracks!"

"Hey don't sweat it. The Scooby Gang's on the case now…Research is one of our areas of expertise. I mean Xander, Anya, and I get down one the research…and Dawnie…well Dawn is amazing…I mean amazing at research and stuff like that. She's even a rather strong witch…Willow and I started training her…anyway she is great with magic…and wizard at learning languages…we think it's because of the fact that she is also The Key…that she's able to "unlock" the languages…Oh! And if you could remember please don't mention her being The Key around her…she doesn't like being reminded…" Tara suddenly began staring at her hands upon realizing she had been babbling a slight flush coming to her cheeks.

She heard Rory chuckling and glanced up and as soon as she caught his gaze he burst out into a hearty fit of laughter. He nearly fell out of his chair as tears came to his eyes from how hard he was laughing. Tara could not help herself and started laughing as well though she failed to see what was so damn funny. After the duo had regained their composure Rory graciously explained his hysterics wiping the tears brought on by the laughing fit from his eyes, "Sorry about that, it's just the way you went on…good God. I thought Willow was supposed to be the babbler of the group? Anyway I'm not too worried about the situation, and yes I'll avoid "key talk" around your girlfriend."

With a nod Tara turned her attention back to her coffee. About an hour later after she had had her shower and eating breakfast Tara got a text from Dawn, _Hey baby, I miss you! Buffy says Scooby meeting at 10 a.m. At Anya's store. See you soon. ;-)_

She stared at her Phone for a moment before replying that she and Rory would be there. When she looked up Rory noticed the beaming smiled plastered on his long-time friend's face. "Message from your sweetheart?"

Tara automatically blushed and looked at the ground. But she almost immediately felt Rory's hand lifting her chin. "Hey Tara you really gotta stop doing that. You have nothing to hide and should never be embarrassed by how you feel for someone. Besides do you remember what I used to tell you back home?" Tara just looked at him her face turning slightly red yet again but smiling at the memories of good times from their past, "I always told you that you shouldn't hide such a pretty face from the world. And I meant it then and I mean it still today."

"So anyway when do I get to meet the rest of your "Scooby Gang"?" The young druid asked as he gathered the papers back into his folder.

"In about forty-five minutes." Came the blonde witches reply as she headed off to her bedroom to finish getting herself ready for the day.

Ten o'clock found the gang place one newbie at the store that Anya ran on the outskirts of Seattle called The Magic Box II. Introductions had been made and Rory and Xander immediately began acting as though they'd known each other for years, much to the chagrin of all those present as the two men's sarcastic personalities seemed to feed off one another.

After everyone had been brought up to speed on the situation Rory shared what little information he'd been able to gather on mister big bad. "Ok so from what I've been able to uncover, which is damn little, we know that Mithos has active interests in Russia, Germany, the UK, the US, and several other countries around the world. In other words he has resources…kind of like a James Bond super villain. I have uncovered ties to Richard Wilkins III; former mayor of Sunnydale, some godlike being named Glorificus…and judging from your reactions you've been acquainted with these guys, and last but not least he studied in the Vatican with a "priest" named Caleb."

As his words sank in he scanned the faces of his new friends around the table. Buffy was just staring at the table top with a blank face, Anya had snuggled up against Xander's arm laying her worried face on his shoulder as his hand reached up to tough his eye-patch at the mention of Caleb, Dawn truly worried by the reactions of her sister and friends had placed her arms around her blonde girlfriend as she sought to be comforted, finally Rory met Tara's gaze he saw fear and sadness in her eyes but she pushed that aside quickly, she had to be strong for Dawnie right now and could be worried later. Even so Rory could still see the range of emotions in her aura.

He had read all their auras in fact as his gaze had passed over them all. And what he found caused him no concern…they were a bit scared at the moment but he also saw strength and determination in all of them, it was at that moment he realized how glad he was that Tara had found herself such an amazing group of friends, and upon this realization the guilt he had felt building up in the years he hadn't been there to protect his best friend began to subside a little.

Xander was the first to break the silence, "So do we go and find him in his hollowed out volcano and stop him after an exchange of witty one-liners?"

This caused the women around the table to roll their eyes and it brought chuckle out of Dawn breaking through the funk she had fallen into. Rory smirked, "Well I'm all for that plan. The problem is that no one has ever been able to pin down the location of his main HQ. But maybe Willow will be able to find something helpful…"

Having recovered from their state of shock the Scoobies began discussing possible courses of action. Finally upon concluding that they were out of their league sitting around the table in the little magic shop Dawn spoke up over the din of voices, "We obviously aren't going to find anything out in our books to help us out…I'm gonna give Giles a call and see what information he can dig up. We should call Angel and get Wolfram and Hart's resources on this as well." The young woman spoke as she moved off and began dialing.

"I think she certainly has the right idea on this. I'm gonna go call up a few of my one contacts now that I'm not worried about remaining undercover. I'll probably come back here around closing time with anything that I've found out. It was nice to meet you all." Rory said as he left the table and made his way out the door letting in the day's first customer as he left.

With the entrance of the customer Anya and Buffy set to work. Anya worked the cash register and Buffy checking the inventory of their more popular items restocking when necessary as well as keeping her eye on potential shoplifters. Since the move to Seattle Buffy had tried to find a job but no one would hire her…not even the fast food places, and Anya had opened the small shop without realizing that a bigger city meant a bigger customer base and she needed help so she'd hired Buffy. The two got along fairly well, Anya wasn't a demanding boss, and of course knew Buffy was a slayer, so she was more understanding when duty called Buffy away on an emergency. The slayer would always pick up a few extra hours whenever she could to make up for the times when she had to bail to deal with the baddies.

Xander kissed his wife goodbye while Tara gave Dawn a parting hug, they weren't quite ready for any public displays of affection just yet, (they had to get to work as well) Xander owned a small yet successful construction company and Tara, fresh out of college was working as his company's secretary/accountant while deciding whether or not to continue her schooling or to go out into the world. She actually enjoyed the job she had, glad that she had taken enough of the right classes to be considered a true accountant, though she hated the secretary title. As they left the building she turned to him and said, "You know if I'm going to stay on and work for you, I think we should change my job description to "office manager" though really I'd accept pretty much anything without "secretary" in the name."

The one-eyed man turned to look at her with a happy expression, "Really? You really want to stay on?" Then his expression changed to a more devious one, "And come on secretary implies sexiness."

Tara just stared at him with one eyebrow raised. "Sexiness…really that's what you're worried about? The "sexiness" that the title implies…I'm probably gonna regret this but what exactly **do** you picture when you think "secretary" Xander?"

"A tight skirt that is just barely long enough to be considered professional, a tight white button-up shirt tucked into the skirt at the waist with the top three or four buttons undone, showing plenty of cleavage, sometimes there's a pair of glasses as well…sometimes not."

Tara stopped in her tracks, "And you picture me this way…?"

"No…well okay sometimes…but only in the most respectful manner." Xander replied still being honest but sensing the borderline anger in the blonde witch's voice, "And not just you there's also Buffy, Willow, Cordelia, even Dawnie and Fred…before her body was taken by Illyria that is…haven't done with Illyr…and now I just did." He said with a slight shiver went through him then a lecherous smile crept across his face. When he saw Tara's exasperated expression he continued, "Sorry, spaced out there for a minute…by the way secretary Illyria, pretty hot. Anyway…you trying to tell me you've never imagined anything like that, not even Willow or Dawn…or better yet Willow _and_ Dawn…?" Xander asked skeptically.

Tara's expression had changed as he'd kept talking she couldn't help but picture Dawn as the stereotypical office assistant he had described, then Willow had walked through the door dressed much the same. She felt something stir within her then shook off the image in her mind, promising herself to revisit it later. She tried glaring at her friend but he just laughed at her.

"Planted ideas in your head didn't I?" He asked with a very proud grin on his face.

She couldn't help but smile and punched him gently in the shoulder. "You're a horrible person Xander Harris. I'm going to have a hell of a time trying to get through work today _not_ thinking about sexy fun-time involving Willow and Dawnie…Dammit! There it goes again." She said tilting her head and slapping the up-turned side as if trying to force the thought out like it was water in her ear. This of course just caused Xander to laugh again so hard he almost wrecked the car twice before regaining control of himself. He continued teasing Tara all the way to the small office building that was their business headquarters.

Back at the magic shop Dawn had just finished her calls from Anya's office. She walked back out and wandered around the shop for a while browsing through the various books. For a while now she had been contemplating buying her first personal spell book, after some minor training in emotional control with Willow and Tara after the ordeal with Glory (anger management as she liked to call it) they had told her she had potential to be a very powerful witch. While she had been excited to hear this she immediately wondered if her power was just another aspect of her being The Key. Though she had accepted the fact that her body, even though it passed as eighteen and there were records of her birth and education covering the life of a real girl (along with a lifetimes worth of memories), in truth she had really only existed for the last four years.

She was constantly trying to forget about the facts around her creation, as well as the purpose The Key had nearly been used for. However she was reminded on a regular basis by her recurring nightmares, they didn't happen every night and had become fewer and further between but still happened. And every time she looked at Buffy and saw the barely noticeable scar above her the temple of her older sister she was taken back to that night, the night her sister had died the second time, _She died because of me…_Dawn thought, the same thought she that had invaded her mind every night throughout that summer before Willow, Xander, Anya, and Tara had brought the blonde slayer back to life.

Dawn had not answered them then because she wanted to give the idea of being a witch a lot of thought before jumping into it. She remembered well the broken arm she had suffered the night she'd gone out with Willow, as well as other things that had happened that night, things she had not told anyone including Willow who didn't seem to remember everything. It hadn't been anything horrible though, Willow and she had been making out for several minutes and had almost move on to something more serious when the demon had come running out of the shadows. But she had avoided telling anyone that for fear that knowing they had nearly had sex would hurt Willow even more (she knew Willow would feel like she had been taking advantage of the younger girl, but Dawn had never said no) and she had not wanted to give Buffy another reason to be mad at the redhead.

It had been several years now since these events had taken place (including Willow going crazy from trying to completely avoid using magic and nearly destroying the world) she had seen the dangers of magic. But she also knew how good it could be when you did it right. Finally coming to a decision she selected a book from the shelves simply titled "Witchcraft" and placed it on the counter next to the register.

Anya looked from the book to Dawn and smiled, "Finally decided huh Dawn? You'll make a great witch." Said the ex-demon as she punched buttons adding up Dawn's purchase into the cash register, "Is that going to be everything?"

"Is what going to be everything?" asked Buffy as she walked up behind her sister peering around the young brunette to look at the book on the counter. "Wow so you finally made up your mind to become a witch. I'm happy for you Dawnie…just remember, be careful."

"Yeah I made up my mind. I had a lot to think over. Thank you for your support and don't worry I'll remember the lessons I've learned from Willow's mistakes." Dawn said with a half grin as she handed Anya the money and accepted back her change.

"I'm gonna take the car and head home Buffy. Call me if you need a ride Okay?" Dawn called as she headed for the door.

"Alright see you later kiddo!" Buffy yelled from the basement storeroom.

"Not a Kid!" Dawn yelled as the door closed behind her.

She climbed into the driver's seat of the Jeep Cherokee that had once belonged to their mother, the old much driven vehicle had narrowly avoided a dusty grave in the collapsing Sunnydale as Dawn and Xander had been cut off from the intended escape route. The two had almost never even made it to the car. They had been swarmed by Bringers in the parking lot as the bus sped away. The two warriors had initially stood back to back in order to defend each other, but upon the next rumbling of the earth had both instinctively launched their own individual attacks. Buffy and Faith would've shrunk back at the fierce look on the vastly outnumbered duos faces, Xander's already more intimidating because of the eye-patch. At the last minute Xander had been knocked unconscious by a blow he had no hope of blocking due to the fact that his sword was buried in the back of a Bringer who had gotten behind Dawn. Dawn made quick work of the last living Bringer then dragged Xander's limp body into the waiting vehicle. Climbing into the driver's seat she floored the accelerator tearing out of the parking lot leaving behind dual black lines on the speedily crumbling pavement. She continued with her pedal to the metal driving till they were safely out of town coming to stop next to the school bus having just completed a driving course that would have gotten her a nod of respect from The Transporter. Xander had finally come to and they went out to meet their friends, who in turn marveled a how much more bloodied Xander and Dawn were compared to the rest of them…there would be time for retelling of tales later though.

They had gone many places in this thing just Dawn, Buffy, and Joyce. Movies, picnics, road trips, shopping sprees, even went camping a couple times. Dawn felt a couple tears which she wiped away and forced the rest back. She missed her mom, and Buffy did too, but they had grieved for a long time and the sisters had promised themselves, each other and their mother that they would try to shed no more tears but instead live lives that would make Joyce proud of the women she'd raised. _Next purchase I make_ Dawn thought as she looked around the well-used vehicle _is definitely going to be a new…well new-used car. This thing is getting to be a pretty crappy pile of rust._ But she knew she and Buffy were hesitant to part with it because of the memories associated with it, and because for some odd reason their mom had seriously loved the, _probably for the same reason as me and Buffy._

_Wait a second_, Dawn said to herself as she was about to pull away from the curb. _It's probably not a good idea for me to be by myself with this baddie trying to catch me._ With that she put the car in park and walked back into the shop, book in hand. "Buffy what were you thinking letting me leave here by myself?"

"What do you mean?" Buffy asked as she walked up through the door to the basement. Then an expression of horror crept across her face, "Holy shit Dawn. I'm sorry I didn't even think…" She set the box down and rushed over hugging her sister as though something might have actually happened to her in the last couple minutes. "I guess we probably should make sure to have someone with you at all times. Damn these bad guys for trying get to me through my friends and family! God I hope I get to meet this guy face to face. So what do you wanna do while we're stuck here? Anya would probably pay you for helping with some things around here…and on my breaks we could do some sparring if you want to." Buffy had made sure to spend serious one on one time with Dawn after they had defeated The First Evil. And her little sister had become one hell of a fighter, aside from the slayer's superior strength a fight between them would be an even match. They had recently begun including weapons in their sparring sessions, mostly wooden practice weapons but Dawn had insisted they use real swords and the only concession she had given Buffy was that the blades be dull…at least for their first few sessions.

"Sounds good to me." Said Anya walking out of the training room (which was also where they stored the decorative weapons) carrying a couple beautifully designed yet deadly looking axes. "You can help Buffy stock the shelves if you want and I'll just add extra to Buffy's paycheck so we don't have to worry about filing tax forms. If that's alright with you."

"Sure, at least I'll have something to do. If I went home I'd probably just end up watching TV anyway." Dawn said with a shrug.

One hundred seventy miles south in Portland, Oregon Willow Rosenberg received a call on her cellphone from a number she didn't recognize. She answered it anyway and heard a familiar voice at the other end.

_Hey Willow. It's Rory, Tara gave me your number and I hope I didn't interrupt anything._

"Oh hey Rory, no you didn't interrupt anything. I was just getting ready to do the research thing and see what my contacts knew about the new big bad."

_That's actually what I was calling about, if you give me your email I'll send you a copy of the info we already have so that you don't have to start from scratch._

"Yeah that would be great! My email is redwitch at gmail."

_Really? You got redwitch? Lucky girl. I had to settle for thelastdruid9645213…it's really lame. Anyway I'll let you go and send you those files."_

"Alright talk to you later Rory" Willow said hitting the end call button. As she walked into her apartment. She had just gotten home and she needed a shower. She had planned on going straight home after leaving The Summers' house but once she had gotten back to Portland she found herself being draw to one of her favorite bars. The next morning she had woken up naked in bed with some hot blonde chick…_what was her name Leah, Leeann, Lenore?_ She just hadn't found anyone worth staying with since Tara. Kennedy had been good for her to help her get over Tara, but she was too bossy for Willow, their personalities just clashed too much. The fights had started soon after Sunnydale. Neither of them ever went too far but one day willow came home and Kennedy had been packing her things. They had parted on good terms, and still stayed in contact with one another on a regular basis.

After freshening up she went to her computer open the message from Rory and printing out the attached files. She scanned the rest of her emails and found one from Dawn asking if she could come back up to Seattle for dinner Sunday night. She replied yes to that then closed out her email and picked up the printed pages and began reading through them as she put a couple hot pockets into the microwave. _Damn this bad guy was the real deal. Totally international super villain status._ She started to shake in rage,_ This asshole tried to hurt Tara and Dawnie. And that didn't sit well with the powerful witch. Did this guy even do their research? Did they know anything about the people they were fucking with? Two powerful witches, and ex-demon, a one-eyed carpenter who wielded a battle axe like a bad ass, a slayer, a young girl who grew up with all of them and was a real bad ass in her own right, and now a young man who at birth had been imbued with the soul of a three thousand year old druid. Yeah,_ she thought as a wicked smile crept across her face, _these guys are seriously fucked._

Upon finish her reading and her microwave meal she began making calls to all her contacts to find out what more she could that was helpful. Little did she know that as she was going through this process there was an entire network of researches spreading out from a training facility in London and another from a law office in L.A.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note:** This is the updated chapter 5 with hopefully all corrections made...I'm happy with it now and hope you all enjoy reading it. More to come soon.

**Chapter 5**

**London, England**

**Watcher's Council manor house**

**Present Day 7:00 p.m. local time**

Giles had just hung up after talking to Dawn. She had filled him in on everything that her group knew and asked him if he could use his connections to find out more, she also informed him that they'd already talked to Willow, and that she was going to call Angel once finished with him. The middle aged Brit set down his phone and went about cleaning his glasses, which as usual didn't need cleaning. A young, beautiful brunette with dark eyes walked into the room while he was in the midst of his cleaning. "So who was that on the phone G?"

"Faith…oh yes right." He said hastily as he came back to reality from being lost in thought over the information provided to him by Dawn. "That was Dawn. Apparently there's a new big bad in the game. Not of the demon, witch, or hell god variety either."

"Okay so spill. What's the sitch?"

Giles shared with Faith all that Dawn had told him. "They didn't ask but if this man is as bad and as powerful as we fear I may send you to Seattle to help out. If nothing else you'll get to catch up with everyone."

"Whatever you say," Faith answered with a nod, "I'm gonna take a few of the more advanced girls out with me on patrol tonight. If it's slow out there we'll probably be back around midnight to one o'clock. Sound good G-man?"

Giles just nodded, already falling back into thought as he tried to figure out just who he should call first. He knew Faith didn't really need his confirmation, he had been telling her for the past couple years that she had become much more than just the scared teenager from Boston who had lived a hard life. He was truly proud of how far she had come, with the help from Angel in LA; to placing herself willingly back under Giles' training. Buffy had even visited several times to check on her progress but recently those visits and calls had become more social than business. The two slayers seemed to be becoming friends much to the Englishman's surprise and that just made him more proud of the both of them. He didn't know if the blonde slayer had actually forgiven Faith for her trespasses but he could sense that there was no longer an air of hostility between them.

As the woman once referred to as "The Dark Slayer" left the building to patrol with a few of the trainees he set about making a couple phone to see what he could dig up.

On the other side of the world in a Los Angeles lawyers' office a much paler man was also just finishing up a similar call with the same young woman. "Sure thing Dawn."

_Are you sure it won't be a hassle for you to spare the resources Angel?_

"Yes I'm sure; I'll get our people on it right away. Just let me know if there's anything else you need."

_Thanks again, we'll call you with any updates we get as well. I gotta go now you know, time to do the research thing._

"Ok, bye."

"And just what did the niblet want?" asked a platinum blonde figure leaning against the doorway of the expansive office.

"Spike…well it looks as though that guy who's been giving us so much hell lately has changed the focus of his efforts. Some of his operatives showed up in Seattle and tried to kidnap Dawn. Don't worry Tara was with her." Angel said noticing the sudden agitation at the mention of danger to the youngest Summers girl who Spike thought of and protected like a little sister. "On top of that a guy who Mithos had thought was working for him turned on his operatives and beat the shit out of 'em. Guess he's a childhood friend of Tara's. I just sent Gunn a message, I'm gonna have him look up what he can on the guy anyway, his names Rory O'Brien, and get this he's a druid."

Spike tensed at that, "I thought the Druids died out even long before any of us?"

"That's what I thought too. Well I guess we'd better get to work."

"Yes sir Mr. Boss man! You know you should consider yourself lucky that I still let you give the orders."

"And I am deeply honored by that Captain Peroxide." Angel said both vampires meeting the other's steely gaze. Spike was the first to break the stare his mouth turning into his patented smirk. He gave a slight nod then left the room. Leaving Angel shaking his head with a small grin on his own face.

The next state north in Portland Willow was scrambling to get her list of a million things done. She had filed the last of the papers that the city needed for the permits for the compound which would serve as the headquarters for the new coven, there were about five witches in attendance at the bi-weekly meetings she hosted in her apartment. They could easily have more but they just didn't currently have the room for a larger group. So she had hired Xander's company to build it for her; it was really more of a monastery in its appearance. It would have plenty of room for meetings of up to fifty to begin with, it had an expansive library (many of the books provided by Wolfram & Hart as well as The Watchers Council) for studying and researching, a training facility to which she had added a special touch, a binding spell to contain any errant spells (just in case), and finally available housing for up to twenty people.

Now with business taken care of she sat down back at her apartment and began making calls to a couple of her contacts to see what they could tell her about this new baddie. She was going over the notes she had compiled and comparing them with what Rory had sent her when her phone rang. She had to do a double take when she looked at the caller Id. It was Zeera, the head of the Witches Council. She answered the phone hoping for good news but not really knowing what to expect.

Back in Seattle Rory was running into roadblock after roadblock in his search for information. Unbeknownst to him that there were dozens of people, and not quite people, around the world becoming just as exasperated by similar issues. Finally after getting tired or running headfirst into countless dead ends he decided to make his way back to the magic shop hoping that someone had had more luck than he.

When Rory walked back through the door of the magic shop at around four thirty p.m. Anya gave a quick glance from the counter where she was reading over some financial papers. Seeing it wasn't a customer she turned her attention back to the most important thing in her life. While the papers only had numbers and letters on them, those letters and numbers represented her money. Her lovely, beautiful, green money oh how she loved money. _Maybe I'll have Xander dress up in clothes made of money one night…_she thought then realized that the guy, _what was his name again…Laurie? Maury? Rory? Yeah that's it Rory the druid!_ was still standing there as if waiting for something.

"What do you want?" She asked almost angrily at being distracted from counting her money. Then she remembered the several talks she had had with Xander about the importance of politeness. She was trying but even though it had been several years since her last stint as a vengeance demon that had been her life for over one thousand years, and vengeance demons didn't need politeness. However she promised Xander she would try and she was getting better. "Sorry. I mean do you need anything?" she revised sounding almost sweet now.

"No thanks. I was just coming back to check on everyone. See if any of you had made any progress. Where's Buffy? I thought she worked here."

"Yeah she and Dawn are in the back room, which serves as weapon storage and training facility. It's right through that door if you wanna check it out." Said the blonde shop owner gesturing toward the back of the store.

"Thanks, I think I will check it out." Said the young man with a smile, Anya just shrugged and went back to studying her papers.

He stepped into the back room and was immediately impressed by what he saw. The walls were lined with a wide variety of weapons, they had bastard swords, long swords, gladii, he even saw a few caladbolgs, there were battle axes, fire axes, throwing axes, hatchets, tomahawks, cross bows, long bows, even a few modern compound bows, then you got to the vast supply of staffs, stakes, daggers, and knives. It was a weapon fetishist's wet dream.

His gaze was quickly drawn from the merchandise to the two sisters dueling in the center of the expansive room. Despite the slayer's superior strength and speed it was apparent that she was only slightly holding back, making Rory instantly impressed by Dawn's skill. She wasn't as fast or as strong but because of that her instincts and tactical prowess was honed to a point beyond what someone born with natural skill could hope to achieve, that was one of the perks of having no supernatural abilities your survival was dependent on training alone. And that need to survive and drive forward is what turned the average human into a force to be reckoned with. Some might call it fight or flight instinct, which was somewhat accurate. The human body did naturally have the instinct of whether to battle or flee, a decision that was made in an instant, then coupled with adrenaline and a will to live is what made it possible for your average homo sapien to stand toe to toe with a vampire, or in this case a vampire slayer.

After a few more moments Buffy finally gained the upper hand and a few blows later Dawn found herself on the ground with a sword tip to her neck. At first she glared then that gave way to a smile. "Damn! I almost had you too!" The brunette panted as her sister helped her to her feet.

"Yeah, maybe next time Dawnie." The blonde replied with a grin.

"Oh you could've still won. Right up to the point just before you fell." Rory said as he stepped toward the middle of the room.

"Rory! We didn't even see you come in. How was the investigation stuff?" asked Dawn.

"Not great I'm afraid I don't know any more than what I told you this morning. May I?" he said as he stepped over to them reaching out and asking to see Dawn's sword. "If you like I can demonstrate what I meant about your sparring session."

Dawn handed him the sword and he gestured for Buffy to attack. "And don't hold back any more than you did for her." He said to the slayer their weapons clashed a few times as the two became accustomed to the others style of fighting.

After a few moments Rory spoke again, "You have good instincts Dawn, and a lot of skill. I'm sure you don't have to be told however that almost every fight with something supernatural you are going to be the weaker appoint, when it comes to brute strength that is. But you have to use the fact that most demons will rely on their superior strength and speed to get the job done. You have to rely on tactics, training and instincts. All of which I can tell you are good with."

He and Buffy continued trading blows as he spoke. "As a result though you should try to avoid catching their strikes in a regular block, always try redirect. Make they're blows glance off the edge of your weapon, treat it kinda like Judo, use their strength against them. Now Buffy attack like you did near the end of yours and Dawns fight. And Dawn watch closely."

Buffy's attacks started coming quicker and more forcefully. Yet even though Rory was on the defensive she never truly gained the upper hand on him, as the angle of his blocks caused her blows to glance harmlessly of his blade. Lost in her desire to win she mistakenly fell into a rhythm and as soon as Rory caught the timing of her strikes he was able to quickly take advantage of her mistake. Her next blow came toward his head but instead of blocking it like he had all the times before he ducked which caused Buffy to lose her balance, she found herself facing away from her opponent having spun one hundred eighty degrees due to the force of her swing. Before she could recover she felt the cold steel of Rory's sword against her neck. She gulped even though she partially trusted the man, she realized that they really knew very little about him so she became very tense and worried until he pulled his weapon away from her throat. "Lesson ended." He concluded in a joyful tone.

"By the way this is a nice training facility you guys have here." The young man spoke again as he placed the sword back on its empty space on the rack.

"Thanks." Dawn said, "We all helped put it together, even Willow before she left town." suddenly realizing that they didn't know Rory very well and if he was important to Tara then she should get to know him. So she asked "Hey Rory, Buffy and I are having Willow and Tara over for dinner tomorrow. And I was wondering if you would like to come as well?"

"Sure. I'd be happy to!" Said the man with a smile.

The Scoobies regrouped at the shop once again when work was over. None of them had really had time to do any research but the next day was Sunday and Buffy asked Rory if he wanted to go around town with her to see what they could find out from some of her demon informants. Tara would stay with Dawn since she had been the initial target for this most recent evil. Anya and Xander said that they'd be available if they were needed and then left the store hand in hand to go home. Dawn and Tara were standing on the sidewalk when Buffy walked past after locking up.

They were talking quietly Tara had been a little worried all day and near the end of work it had been almost a full on panic that something might have happened to her Dawn. They were standing close their hands clasped but neither moving that extra few inches. Already tired of seeing this Rory walked toward his car and "tripped against Tara pushing her right into Dawn's arms. "Oops…clumsy me." He mumbled but neither girl heard him. He looked up to see Buffy sitting in the Jeep waiting patiently for Dawn and shaking her head him slowly. However she couldn't hold back the grin on her face and finally mouthed "nice move". He gave a quick nod and got into his car to wait for Tara.

The two women stood in their embrace on the sidewalk. "I missed you today." Tara finally spoke, "And Goddess I was so worried that something had happened to you while I was at work. It's a good thing Xander was there he had to calm me down a couple times."

"I missed you to Tara baby. But today wasn't a total waste. Anya's gonna pay me for the work I did. And on our next date _I'm_ gonna take _you_ out." Said the brunette with a grin on her face. They stood in silence for another few moments lost in one another's gaze. "I guess we should probably say goodnight. I'm sure our friends are getting a little bored."

"Huh? Who…Oh right them." Tara said blushing as she realized they were still standing in front of the shop. "Yeah I guess we should…"

Whatever she was going to say was forgotten as Dawn's lips pressed firmly and passionately against her own. Their lips remained locked together and when Dawn's tongue sought entrance through Tara's lips she parted them instantly. Their tongues danced back and forth in their mouths for a blissful eternity. Their friends smiling from the cars and considerately averting their gazes. When they finally broke the kiss both women were panting out of breath. "Goodnight Tara." Dawn said as she quickly walked to her and Buffy's car shooting one last seductive smile to her girlfriend still standing seemingly rooted in place. A moment later the Jeep pulled away and the sisters were headed home.

Tara climbed into Rory's car almost in a daze unaware of the massive grin on the man's face. As he drove them back to Tara's apartment she finally spoke. "Rory am I dreaming right now?"

He glanced over at her and cocked one eyebrow, "Seriously Tara? Why would you think you were dreaming?"

"Because that kiss felt so perfect, she is so wonderful Rory. How did I ever catch her eye?"

"Have you looked at yourself lately?" He asked sarcastically then switching to a serious tone. "Would you agree that I know you better than almost anyone else?" Tara nodded. "Then quit asking how or why because the answer is because you deserve someone like her."

"But I haven't been completely honest with her, with any of them. They think that I knew I was gay my whole life…" Tara said with tears starting to form in her eyes.

"You mean they don't know about you and me? Well you know the reason why that didn't work out. You'll tell them when you're ready. I mean there is a majorly dark time in both our lives attached to that memory, what happened nearly tore us apart for good. It's not one of those things that just comes out when it's convenient. You should probably at least tell Dawn a little about you and me. Because if you wait too long to tell her that she might wonder what is happening in your apartment. Trust me no matter how much you love each other and even if nothing is happening that can kill a relationship."

Later that night Tara lay in her bed staring at the ceiling unable to get any sleep with the battle raging inside her mind. She knew her longtime friend was right, as he often was. But that didn't really make it any easier.

The next morning Rory dropped Tara off at the Summers' house and picked up Buffy. Then the two warriors headed into the big city to find whatever they could. They drove in silence at first, not uncomfortable but yet not quite friendly either. Buffy was the first to say anything trying to start up a light conversation. "So I've been meaning to ask you, I've never seen a car these marking, not that I'm any good with cars as it is, but anyway what brand is it or whatever?"

"It's a Nissan." He said happy to talk cars with anyone.

"Really a Nissan? I guess that explains the right side drive. Okay so what…um model is it?"

"It's the GTR-34. Also known as the Skyline."

"I hope I'm not boring you with all my car questions. It just seemed like something to talk about…"

"Don't sweat it. I love talking about cars. Especially this one, you wouldn't believe how many Ferraris, Porsches, and Lamborghinis I've beaten in the thing."

With the ice officially broken they began talking about a variety of topics, from demon hunting tactics to interrogation methods. Buffy decided during that car ride that she could trust this new guy.

Back at the Summers' house Tara was sitting on the couch with Dawn lying against her shoulder. They were watching TV and idly chatting. After a while Dawn noticed that Tara was acting somewhat distant. She sat up looking at her girlfriend, something was definitely up. "What's wrong Tara?" She asked.

Tara looked at Dawn tears threatening to form in her eyes. "Oh Dawn I want to tell you but I'm worried how you'll react. Rory told me I should talk to you about it and he's usually right…but I just don't know."

"Tara honey whatever it is you can tell me. And if you don't believe me then trust Rory's judgment, you've known him for like ever right?"

"Okay." Tara said after a couple minutes of silence to build up her courage, _whatever happens she deserves to know,_ "My biggest worry is that you'll feel I was intentionally hiding this from you but I wasn't I promise. It's just that tied to this part of my past are other memories that I'm definitely not ready to share yet. I guess I should start at the beginning huh?"

Dawn nodded and held Tara's hand in support. "Well for starters, contrary to what you guys may have believed about me, what I let you believe cause it was convenient, I didn't always know I was gay. I knew I was different but not how, aside from being a witch. I even had a boyfriend in high school, it didn't last very long but it helped me discover who I was. The night he and I had sex I knew something wasn't quite right. I mean it felt good and my body did what it was supposed to, so I just thought it was because it was my first time. But when I woke up and found a naked man lying next to me it dawned on me what the problem really was. When he woke up I was sitting in the corner with my knees hugged to my chest staring at the wall across from me. He came over to me asking me questions but I was zoned out and could only hear the sound of his voice at that point, I could tell he was worried though. The first thing that came out of my mouth was _I'm gay_ I said it calmly too but I guess he saw the scared look in my eyes. I expected him to be upset, to yell at me, and maybe even call me names. I'd heard stories of people finding out their lover was gay, it usually didn't end well, I can't imagine hearing that was good for his ego after what we'd just done. I thought I was about to lose one of my few friends right then. But instead he held me as I cried and _he_ apologized to _me,_ which of course brought even more tears."

Dawn just sat there listening to Tara's story with nothing but love and compassion in her eyes. Then something became blindingly obvious to her and she subconsciously loosened her grip on Tara's hand. "It was Rory wasn't it?" She asked with a slight tinge of worry in her voice. A nagging voice in the back of Dawn's mind began going to work throwing doubts at her like baseballs through a pitching machine _She was with him all those years ago, and he's staying at her apartment now. What are they doing together when no ones around?_ She tried to shake it off but it was persistent.

This was the part that Tara had been scared of, this was where everything could go wrong, depending on how the both handled the next few moments. They were going to either grow stronger or be destroyed as a couple. She nodded her eyes glued to the floor, unable to look at Dawn for fear of what she might see in the young woman's eyes. She immediately felt Dawn's hand leave her own. Then the brunette stood up and began pacing across the room and Tara had no idea of the war raging in Dawn's mind as she battled her fears and doubts. Eventually Dawn quit pacing standing in front of the scared witch sitting on the couch.

"Why did you wait until now to tell me? Why didn't you tell me about this before you asked him to stay with you?" Dawn asked her voice trembling from her forcing herself to not scream the questions.

Tara looked up at the face of the woman she loved her tears now flowing unchecked she knew her stutter was going to present itself even before she started speaking, but she didn't care. "I don't know D-d-dawn. I'm s-sorry I didn't tell y-you right a-away. I d-d-didn't mean to keep it f-from you I swear." She reached out to grab Dawn's hand but she pulled away.

Tara collapsed to her knees on the floor. "Please d-don't hate me!" She cried.

Dawn couldn't handle Tara crying any longer, she was upset yes but upon hearing what Tara just said her heart melted, she found herself kneeling next to her crying girlfriend hugging her tightly as she cried. "I could never hate you Tara love. I just feel a little upset you didn't tell me, a bit jealous even. I know you don't feel that way for him but now knowing your history I can't help it and I'm sorry you thought I'd hate you."

A short time later Tara's tears dried up but she remained kneeling on the floor clinging to Dawn. They finally stood a few minutes later. Dawn held Tara's face between her hands lifting the shorter woman's gaze to meet her own. "I love you Tara. I mean it I know he's just a good friend to you now. But would you hate me if I asked him to stay somewhere else…for my own sanity."

Tara gave Dawn her patented half smile, "I could never say now when you look at me like that. And just in case you're worried about his feelings on that matter, I think he'll understand."

Just after their last stop Buffy's cellphone rang and Dawn quickly brought her up to speed on the situation they now found themselves in. _And since I know you're probably not gonna like whatever idea I come up with I'll leave the choice up to you. We could either have Rory move in here with us…_

"No way Dawn we barely know the guy…"

_Or Tara can move into my room and Rory can stay at Tara's apartment._

Buffy could feel her anger building but then thought about whether she really wanted to get in a fight with Dawn over something like this so instead of the yelling she expected Dawn was rather surprised to hear Buffy say, "Guess what Rory, when we get back you're moving in with me and Dawn."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N:** I decided to take some liberties with Faith's backstory as well as manipulating the memories the monks had fabricated of Dawn to my liking. Without revealing too much let's just say that in this world the monks had realized that there were two slayers, so why have something as important as the Key be protected by just one slayer? There's gonna be another new dynamic added. Hopefully it doesn't break my story…fingers crossed.

**A/N 2: **This is the reedited chapter 6 with all typos fixed (hopefully) and further explanation on Faith's back story.

**Chapter 6**

When Buffy hung up from talking to her sister there was a look of irritation plastered to her face. Rory knew immediately what had caused the change in the situation. He was glad that Tara and Dawn had talked and worked things out, though he had a feeling that things between Dawn and him might become a bit strained, for a moment he thought to offer to get himself a motel room then realized that Tara would never let a friend of hers stay at some crappy motel when she could help it. Finally he looked back up to Buffy, she had been watching him since she had hung up, there was no obvious emotion on her face and the only new addition to her aura was curiosity and maybe a bit of surprise. The druid was the first to speak, "So I take it Dawn and Tara had a bit of a talk about our past."

Buffy nodded, "Yeah…" was all she said but her mouth remained open as though she wanted to say more but couldn't make the words come out.

"Yes Tara and I dated for a time in high school, we slept together and by the time I woke up she was huddled in the corner after coming to the realization she was gay. We _are_ still good friends, and yes that is all we are. No I don't plan to try and steal her back from your sister." Rory said, hoping he had answered all the slayer's unspoken questions.

The short blonde nodded with a sigh and a shrug her expression still unreadable, "Come on then. There's still one more "person" to talk to." The duo headed off down the sidewalk determined on completing their task for the day and hoping to find some much needed information.

As they made their way into the dimly lit, demon friendly bar they stood just inside the door for a moment to allow their senses to adjust to the assault from the rowdy and, in most cases, horrible smelling patrons. The owner of the establishment noticed the out of place newcomers and instantly recognized Buffy. The man with her was a stranger to him though, but he had been around the supernatural long enough to know that muscular tattooed young man had access to some major mojo. With an exasperated sigh he wiped his hands on the towel he held before motioning for Buffy to follow him into his office, leaving his highly capable staff to tend the bar on their own. Turning to his two new visitors as he sat in the large leather chair behind his solid oak desk he asked, "Buffy, long time no see! To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit to my fine establishment and I don't think I've had the pleasure of being introduced to your friend." He finished motioning to Rory.

The Irish-American was still unsure how take the bar owner, he seemed like a nice enough guy, somewhat mousy yet with the air of a mob boss about him. "Tony, Rory, Rory, Tony." The two men nodded to one another, "And now that the introductions are finished we'll jump straight to business. What can you tell us about Mithos?"

Rory parked his car next to the curb out front of Buffy and Dawn's house a couple hours later. He climbed out following Buffy taking his bags out of the back of the car, having stopped by Tara's apartment on their way back in order to collect his things. As he walked through the door he could feel Dawn's eyes following him instantly. Yet when he looked at her he saw not the anger or even jealousy he might have expected, what he saw could only be described as intrigue, which honestly caught him of guard. He realized that staying with the Summers' sisters was not going to be boring. Buffy proceeded to lead her new roommate downstairs to his new basement bedroom, which also served as the laundry room. He took a quick look around; it was actually a rather nice space. The basement was finished so there were no bare concrete walls; the ceiling was sheetrock and painted instead of exposed joists. There was a twin sized bed, a small dresser, and an empty set of shelves. Satisfied with his new sleeping space he set his bags on the bed.

"So is this gonna be acceptable for you?" Buffy asked slightly nervous, "I mean obviously we can hang some blankets from the ceiling, you know for privacy…"

"It'll do fine." Rory said with a reassuring smile. "I'm just glad to have a place to stay. And I'm glad that Tara has friends like you…and the other Scoobies. I was honestly worried for her when she left for Sunnydale, she was still so shy back then, we were both going to go to the University of Washington, but she changed her mind at the last minute for some reason…and I'm probably boring you to death with this story." He said catching himself before he really started to ramble.

Buffy chuckled a little seeing just how similar the witch and druid were at times, "No it's okay, Tara doesn't talk much about her past, so anything I can find out is good to know. So you went to University of Washington? Their mascot is the doggies right?"

Rory, clearly appalled that she would call his alma mater "doggies" literally gasped. "It's the Huskies." He corrected her quickly, "And yeah I went there for a few years. Got a degree in criminal justice and I've used that diploma to fill an empty frame on my wall while I travel the world fighting demons. Sometimes I wonder why people who live lives like we do; you, your Scooby Gang, and me, even bother with things like college educations. I guess it's just something to do."

The blonde shrugged, she had tried the whole college thing herself. But when Joyce had died she was forced to get a job to provide for herself and Dawn and had to drop out of college, _Maybe I should try going back to school after Dawn graduates…_she thought, the idea actually sounding rather appealing. Even Xander who had never really given college a shot was taking night classes to get a business degree. "Sometimes college is a good thing, even for people like us. I mean Tara has a degree in accounting, granted she works for Xander who would give her the job even if she had no skills that applied to that field." She answered finally. "Well if you need anything I'll be upstairs." And with that the druid found himself alone to be acclimated to his surroundings.

Sometime later after he had unpacked most of his things, claiming the small space as his. He turned to face Dawn who was sitting halfway down the staircase. She had crept down quietly but he felt her presence as soon as she'd set herself down. They just stared at each other for a while neither wanting to be the first to look away. Dawn suddenly realized how immature she was being and averted her gaze as she felt her cheeks warming from embarrassment. "I'm acting like a complete moron aren't I?" she asked finally looking back at Rory.

The young man grinned as he climbed the stairs to take a seat next to the high schooler. "Maybe so," he answered, "But I understand and respect whatever concerns you may have. Besides you're still technically a teenager, you're allowed to be somewhat moronic…err…I mean emotional in your decision making. If it's any consolation I have no plans of trying to get back with Tara…that ship sailed long ago." He said, the last part barely audible almost as though he hadn't meant for Dawn to hear it.

"Tara told me there were some deeper, rather painful memories tied to you guys' relationship. I really wanna know but right now it seems better that I not pry to hard."

Rory barely nodded, "She'll tell you sometime." Pausing to look at the girl sitting next to him, "I see there are things in your past she doesn't know yet either."

Dawn looked at him with an angry and slightly confused expression. Rory held up his hands in defense, "Sorry, aura reading. Side effect of my druidness."

The teenager nodded slowly, "That's okay. At least you have a reason for knowing…Xander just seems to know without trying to find out. It's creepy sometimes and yet it's also comforting that you don't always have to explain what's going on. I wasn't meaning to act all jealous if that's how I was coming across."

"Don't worry about it. Like I said, I understand, to an extent, how you feel." Rory said with an air of finality. The duo sat in silence for several minutes no longer feeling awkward around one another. "So do you need any help getting dinner ready?"

"Oh crap! I completely forgot about that! What time is it?" Dawn asked rising quickly to her feet and would have fallen down the rest of the stairs if Rory hadn't been there to steady her.

"Relax it's only 3:30." Rory said after glancing at his watch.

The two made there back upstairs to the main house and went to the kitchen. A while later after confirming that they had all the necessary ingredients Dawn set about ordering Rory around her kitchen. They were briefly interrupted when Buffy informed them that she was going help Anya with something at the magic shop. "Are you gonna be ok here with Rory?" she asked more worried as to whether he and Dawn would get along than over his ability to protect from any possible attacks.

"Yeah we'll be fine." Dawn answered with a reassuring smile, and then her expression changed to a more serious one, "Just don't be late for dinner this time." She warned as Buffy walked through the door.

Meanwhile on I5 still inside the Oregon border Willow was cursing rush hour traffic and big cities in general. While glad that she had left early enough that she would have still been on, time, but she had forgotten about the construction on the freeway, _Dammit! I knew I should've taken the 205!_ She thought smacking the edge of her steering wheel. She could see the bridge that spanned the Columbia River just a few hundred yards away. Once across to the Washington side traffic always seems to magically disappear. Though realistically it was most likely because the interstate went from being just two lanes on the bridge to three lanes once you managed to finally get across. When traffic was good the trip between the two cities took just under three hours, Willow glanced at her phone she knew she would probably have to let Dawn know she was going to be late.

Still further south in Los Angeles, a certain vampire was reading a report which caused his concern over the events Dawn had informed him of to grow exponentially. "Problems on the frontlines?" Angel glanced from the papers to see Spike standing in his office doorway.

"Come in Spike. Close the door." Angel said gesturing for the blonde vamp to take one of the chairs in the room. He handed Spike the summary of the longer report he had been examining. After reading just a few lines Spike looked up with a worried frown, "If even half of this is true…"

"I know." Angel interrupted, "I'm sending you up to Seattle right away with a copy of the report. Let me know if things get worse…if we have to I can ask Illyria to go as well."

Spike rose with a nod, "I suppose I'll be taking the private jet then?"

"Yeah, it leaves at sunset so you have a few hours. And Spike I don't have to tell you how bad this is. This could be some seriously bad shit we're dealing with."

"Right, well then I bloody well better get myself ready to go then. Call me with any changes I'll be in my office. You know I never figured I'd end up doing any sort of desk work."

Angel just nodded in response only having heard half of what Spike said after turning his attention back to the papers littering his desk, _Good God this could go bad so quickly_.

At that same moment almost half a world away a woman was boarding a trans-Atlantic flight at Heathrow in London. Her destination SeaTac by way of JFK in New York. Giles had given her a brief explanation of what he himself had discovered as well as what Angel had sent him. All Faith knew was that she was on a first-class flight back the good old U.S. of A. (all expenses paid by either The Slayer Organization or Wolfram & Hart). She was glad to be headed back, because although she and Buffy had mostly patched things up, there were others who refused to speak with her unless they met with her in person. She especially wanted forgiveness from a certain brunette with bright green eyes who, though she hadn't really existed at the time, still hadn't forgiven Faith for what she had done to Buffy and the other Scoobies all those years ago. She knew the others had more or less forgiven her and moved on, but Dawn had barely even acknowledged her presence in the battle with the First which had surprisingly hurt Faith; because even though she knew the memories weren't real they were still there…not that she wanted to get rid of them. Those memories of a friendship, real or not, had been part of what pushed her to get through her "redemption process".

**South Boston 1997**

**Summers' Residence**

Faith's knock was answered moments later by a smiling brown haired man who looked like he'd just got off work. "You must be Faith. I'm Dawn's father Hank." He said stepping aside to let the girl inside. "She's in her room, upstairs first door on the left."

"Thanks. It was nice to meet you Mr. Summers." Faith said offhandedly, remembering that she should try to be nice to her friend's dad. With that she made her way to the aforementioned room. The door was sitting open so she knocked lightly on the frame before stepping through the doorway.

The younger girl who was laying stomach down on her bed focusing hard on the notebook in front of her, busy writing a letter to her mom and sister in California. Her pen made light scratching sounds as she wrote her thoughts down rapidly. She heard footsteps in her room and looked up angrily at having been interrupted, but seeing it was her friend she quickly leaped from her bed wrapping Faith in a tight hug. Faith was her first and so far only friend since she and her dad had moved to Boston. Though Faith was a couple years older than her she had been held back and Dawn had been moved up a grade so they had a few classes together.

Her first day of school had been hard, having been tagged almost immediately as a nerd she found herself sitting in a corner crying as a trio of bullies had mocked and tormented her as a welcome to her knew school. The eleven year old had hardly noticed through her tears when the threesome had taken off running as though Freddy Krueger had just shown up. She finally began to calm down when she had felt a reassuring arm around her shoulders. Her brunette savior didn't say anything to her their first meeting. Dawn immediately decided that she was going to be good friends with this girl, not just because she protected her from bullies, but because she felt an odd sense of peace when around her. So a few days later Dawn had invited her new friend to a sleepover. Her dad had readily agreed, glad that his daughter had made friends.

Faith couldn't explain why she had felt the need to protect the girl that had quickly become her friend. Normally she ignored other people or would sometimes even join in on the bullying, but for some reason her heart ached when she'd seen the younger girl crying in the corner. It hadn't been hard to scare the bullies away; Faith already had a reputation as the school's best ass kicker. However what had surprised her even more was that she had let the little brat start following her around, though she had to admit she enjoyed Dawn's company. The Boston native had never really had a friend before, and her mom had never been there for her, always too busy with either her booze, or drugs, or fucking her latest boyfriend, at least she didn't hit her anymore, and her father, well she had never met the man. So it was strange for her to feel this close to someone. Over the next couple years they had become almost inseparable. Dawn had ensured that Faith stayed caught up in all her classes, which at first the older girl had fought hard against, but Dawn had been just as stubborn until Faith finally relented.

Then one day things had started to change, Faith would disappear for a couple hours a day and when Dawn asked Faith had just said that her mom had started giving her daily chores to do. Though she saw through the obvious lie Dawn chose not to push the issue. During this time they continued to grow closer, neither really noticed but they had started holding hands whenever they were together, they both could feel something growing between them but neither knew what those feelings meant. Then came a day that both girls cried themselves to sleep over for months to come.

They were supposed to go to the movies, but Faith had never showed up. Dawn had been angry at first, then worried, and finally heartbroken that her best friend had stood her up. Later that same night, early morning really, Dawn woke up to something tapping against her window. When she looked out she saw Faith standing on the street below, forgetting her earlier anger Dawn pulled on a jacket and quickly snuck downstairs and out the front door. She wrapped Faith into a fierce hug then remembered that she was supposed to be upset with the girl and held her at arm's length. "What happened? Why didn't you show up? Did something happen? I was worried about you." Dawns asked the questions rapidly as tears threatened to flow from her watery eyes. She suddenly saw Faith's white tank top splattered with blood and her anger changed instantly to worry. "Oh my God! Is that your blood? Are you hurt?" Dawn began to frantically check her friend for injuries.

Faith, who had been somewhat dazed since Dawn came out the door, finally snapped back to reality. Taking Dawn's now blood stained hands in her own she looked deep into the eyes of her best friend, _How can I tell her the truth? She would never believe me, and think I'd tried to make up an excuse for ditching her. How do I tell my best friend, the only person I care about, the only person I've ever loved, that I'm a vampire slayer? I don't know if she'd slap me, cry, or just run from me…maybe she'd believe…no that's too much to hope for._ "Look D something bad happened tonight, I can't really tell you about it, though I wish I could. It's safer if you don't know. I'm sorry you were worried and no, this isn't my blood, but I have to get away for a while. I'm sorry." Faith said fighting to keep tear from filling her own eyes.

"What!? You can't leave. I need you…I love you." Dawn said finishing in a voice low enough she thought Faith couldn't hear; little did she know Faith had slayer hearing. Dawn's declaration threatened to cause Faith's tears to flow. So before anything more could be said she pressed her lips firmly against the younger girls. Dawn's eyes shot open in surprise but she quickly lost herself in the sweet taste of Faith. Their lips parted and their tongues met, tentatively at first but then more passionately as the world faded away and they got lost in each other. Too soon the kiss was broken as Faith pulled away just enough so their lips parted as they caught their breath. Resting her forehead against Dawn's and reaching up to cup her face with both hands Faith spoke again, "God I wish we hadn't waited so long to do that!" Causing both girls to giggle a little.

Then becoming serious again Faith looked into Dawn's beautiful green eyes as she finally lost the battle with her tears, "I'm sorry Dawnie, I wish I could stay, but it's just too dangerous." She kissed the younger girl on the forehead as she started to pull away, but Dawn drew her in for one last kiss. More desperate than their first it was as though they were trying to press together into one person. Only breaking apart when oxygen became an issue. "I love you Faith!" Dawn said again shouting loud enough to wake a wino who had fallen asleep on the sidewalk.

"I love you too D." Faith said as she began to walk away. Turning one last time before she was out of earshot, "I'll find you again when everything is five by five!"

**Present Day **

**Somewhere over the Atlantic Ocean**

Faith jolted awake feeling a tear run down her cheek. It had been a long time since she had had a dream about her memories with Dawn. It re-instilled her hatred for what Kakistos had done to her, what might have been if she hadn't had to flee Boston. How differently her life might have turned out, _Maybe you would be with Dawn…_ she quickly pushed that painful though aside. She had come to accept how her life was, even enjoy it. Her past sins still haunted her at times, but not so much as they had in the before. Yet there was still one person she wished she could patch things up with, however that person didn't give her the time of day anymore, "Goddammit Dawn, I'm sorry for what I did to your friends all those years ago in Sunnydale. I'm sorry for leaving you alone in Boston. I'm sorry for not being who you needed me to be, who I should have been." She whispered to the window letting one last tear make its way down her cheek before wiping it away and banishing the sad thoughts from her head and tried to enjoy the rest of her flight.

Meanwhile back in Seattle Tara had just shown up again as Dawn and Rory were putting the dishes of food into the oven to cook. Dawn kissed her girlfriend, keeping her hands clear so as not to transfer any sauce or flour on Tara's outfit. Tara took in the sight of her girlfriend spattered here and there with flour or sauce, she barely held in her laughter, "Did you get any food cooked or are you wearing all the ingredients?"

Dawn looked at her girlfriend with an arched eyebrow then looked down at herself and realized that she wasn't a very clean cook, in fact she was surprised when she saw the amount of ingredients that had ended up on her clothes, and marveled that there had been enough left to actually cook. She looked back up at Tara slightly embarrassed and just shrugged. "Guess I should probably go get cleaned up huh?"

At that moment Dawn's text alert went off. Wiping her hands on her already dirty shirt she checked the message which was from Willow. _I might be a bit late. Tire blew going through Olympia. Be there in about 45 minutes…Hopefully._

"Who was that?" asked Rory and Tara at the same time.

"Oh Willow letting me know she might be late." Dawn replied and added, "She had car troubles," before either of her friends could ask "why?"

Later that evening, after Buffy came back from the magic box, she and Dawn had just finished getting the table set when there was a knock on the door. Since both of the Summers sister were busy Tara answered it. A slightly exasperated Willow stepped over the threshold and after greeting everyone, started on a short tirade about her car, "That's the last time I buy something on fuckin Craigslist! So, yeah, the tire blew in Olympia, not a huge deal, a minor inconvenience really since I had a spare. Then the Goddamn instrument panel stops working completely, so I'm driving "blind", I don't know how fast I'm going or how much gas I have! Finally as I get off I-5 here in Seattle the piece of shit overheats on me! Damn my luck!"

"I can take a look at it if you want." Offered Rory, "I worked for a mechanic in high school and college. Can't promise you anything, but I might be able to fix it."

"That would be awesome, thanks!"

As the group of friends took their seats around the table Willow asked, "Before I go diving into this delicious looking food, Buffy didn't have a hand in cooking anything right?" she finished with a hopeful look at Dawn, completely ignoring her best friend's death glare.

"No, don't worry. It's all edible." Dawn answered squeezing her sister's shoulder light heartedly as everyone laughed.

The dinner went great making Dawn happy that she'd successful put something together. Conversation was diverse and fast moving as friends got reacquainted and new friendships were forged. Rory was just finishing up the story about his and Tara's first encounter with fighting vampires, "…And then Tara threw a fireball at the last vamp as I was still recovering from the one I had staked, but instead of just throwing one and killing the vampire she throws two, one knocks the vamp down while the second continues in a straight line toward yours truly. Who had just gotten back to his feet only to get hit by a fireball right on my ass! And dammit those flames aren't very easy to put out. I was confined to "standing room only" for several weeks." Rory's new friends were thoroughly entertained by this story and Dawn had to wipe a tear from her eyes she was laughing so hard.

Once dinner was over Dawn excused herself momentarily to go retrieve her recently purchased items which she had hidden away so she could surprise her Wiccan friends. She came back into the dining room and set it on the table in front of herself and between the two Witches. "Willow, Tara, I have come to a decision, yes I know finally right? I want to study magic, but I want _both_ of you to teach me."

While Tara and Willow were over joyed and hugging their friend and now fellow Wiccan. Rory was busy studying Dawn's aura, which had brightened due to the excitement of her announcement. What he found there truly stunned him. He had some new "calls" to make tonight that had nothing to do with Mithos. This discovery was possibly the biggest thing in Gaelic mythology in the last thousand years. He slipped away from the celebration unnoticed and made his way out to the back yard. He stood barefoot and still for a moment, seemingly doing nothing. However he was reaching out to lands beyond the mortal coil. Seeking audience with one of the few beings who could claim some sort of dominance over him.

In his trance Rory was transported to Tír na nÓg, the land the Celtic gods (the Tuatha Dé Danann) called home. Once there he sought out and was granted an audience with Brigit, the queen of the Tuatha Dé Danann. She was a beautiful woman, as the goddess of metalworking she was outfitted in a beautifully ornate yet functional suit of armor. Her golden hair flowed in waves cascading from the shining helm with framed her flawless face of creamy pale skin set with piercing blue-green eyes. "Are you sure of this discovery O'Brien? If what you say is true it could mean a shift in the balance in this ancient war we wage against evil."

"I cannot say for sure Brigit. I didn't even notice it at first but then I saw something in her aura that I hadn't seen in at least seven lifetimes. What shall I do Milady?"

"Do nothing for now. Just keep on her as you were. Though in case this discovery is true you will need to protect her at all costs, I give you leave to ignore your oaths when protecting her. We can't let anyone discover this that would use it for evil."

"Yes Ma'am. One last thing if you will. I know you aren't my messenger, but if you see the Morrigan could you tell her I'm looking for her?"

Brigit gave Rory a half smile it was a widely known fact that he and the Morrigan often made wagers with one another over various things. "I will tell her. May I ask what the bet was this time?"

"Let's just say that the outcome of our bet results in there being on less God of Thunder, and her owing me a huge favor because of it."

"Oh you finally killed Thor did you? About time, that guy was a major prick."

"Well Milady I believe I have overstayed my usefulness to you. I'll report back with any developments. Until then farewell." And with that Rory turned and walked back into the Summers' house to rejoin the party.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N:** Here it is! The updated Chapter 7! New, improved, and now with kung-fu grip and karate chop action. (lol I know I need help, but seriously enjoy!)

**Chapter 7**

While everyone was busy enjoying one another's company in the Summers' house Buffy's cellphone rang. At first she wasn't going to answer it, but after seeing that it was Giles she hit the "accept" button and placed the phone to her ear, "Hello."

"_Ah, yes, Buffy. I have some news for you…"_

"Oh! Have you found something out about Mithos?" Once Buffy said the bad guy's name all other activity in the house ceased, and all eyes focused on the short blonde woman talking on the phone.

"_Well yes, but that's not the sole reason I called. I called to let you know that Faith is on her way to SeaTac, along with the information myself and our researchers have gathered. Her flight should land in about 6 hours. Sorry about the short notice but our discovery made it imperative."_

"That's okay Giles I'll make sure that someone is there to pick her up when she lands. Can you tell me anything about the big bad over the phone, or is it "read only" information."

"_I'm afraid the intel is too sensitive to trust to be shared over phone lines. I better hang up now I have the trainees to tend to now that Faith's gone."_

"Alright, thanks Giles."

Buffy hung up and could feel everyone's eyes on her. She turned her head up to meet their curious gazes. "That was Giles, I guess they found out some stuff about our new buddy Mithos, but he couldn't tell me anything over the phone. So Faith'll be here in a few hours with the information."

Dawn tensed a bit and her eyes took on an icy gleam somewhere between sadness and rage. She did not want to see the formerly evil slayer. She knew that things hadn't been easy for Faith but she thought they'd had something special going until that fateful night in Boston, but from Dawn's point of view Faith had just been the first of many who abandoned her, followed soon by a long line of people who she cared for but would ignore her and leave her alone. People often told her she had some issues, well those assholes were right. First Faith had left her alone in Boston (only to arrive Sunnydale to end up betraying Buffy and her friends), then a short time later her dad had seemingly gotten bored with her and shipped her off to her mom and sister in Sunnydale. Just a few months later her mom died due to complications from surgery, which caused Buffy to become distant when Dawn knew they needed each other, she didn't really have time to mourn she ended up helping Willow take care of Tara who had been made crazy by Glory.

A few days later Buffy sacrificed herself to close the portal glory's minion had opened with Dawn's Key powered blood, she hadn't had time to mourn for her mom and now she'd lost her sister as well, yet she had to pretend that everything was normal and try to pass the Buffybot as the real Buffy, thank God she'd had Willow, Tara, Xander, Giles, Spike, and even Anya to lean on otherwise she probably would've been driven completely insane. Then at the end of the summer Willow had brought Buffy back to life and Dawn had thought, _Yay! I have my sister back. Maybe things will be okay._ However Buffy had come back with some major issues of her own (a result of being pulled out of heaven), but she wouldn't tell anyone that so Dawn thought she just didn't want her younger sister around (of course Buffy going crazy due to demon venom and trying to kill her sister and friends didn't help anyone's problems). Then it seemed to Dawn like things between her and Buffy were going to be okay after their bonding time during Willow's world destructive rage.

However a short time later The First Evil reared its ugly, non-corporeal head and the potential slayers had begun showing up taking any sort of healing Dawn and Buffy had been doing and throwing it out the window. This entire series of events Dawn traced back to Faith hurriedly leaving her behind and alone in Boston. She really did not want to see the woman coming to Seattle, she also knew deep down that blaming the Bostonian was foolish, she had been able to forgive everyone else and move on to an extent, and with the help of a couple school and court appointed counselors.

Tara sensed the unease in Dawn at the mention of Faith, everyone in the room did. The entire mood of the house changed and after a few moments of quiet Rory was the first to move, realizing the party had definitively ended, said his goodnight to his friends and headed to his room. Tara kissed Dawn goodnight and headed to her apartment, Dawn went up to her room for the night as well. Willow and Buffy stayed up and talked a while neither had to work in the morning and Willow was stuck in town anyway. A couple hours and a few glasses of wine later they were sitting on the couch laughing and talking about Dawn, Tara, and Rory. "I don't mean to bring up any possibly bad feelings, but I have to ask. How are you dealing with finding out about Dawn and Tara?"

Willow looked over at her friend who appeared quite uncomfortable, as if she wanted to take the question back now that she had asked it. "It's fine Buffy. To be honest I'm glad Tara has finally found someone again. I know our break up was really my fault alone, yeah I really fucked that up, but I'm glad for them. I've tried moving on myself, but I keep coming back to ask myself, _Why did I use magic on her and abuse her like that? Who was I trying to turn her into?_" Willow looked to her best friend with tears in her eyes, "Am I evil Buffy? Am I any better than the demons we fight?"

Buffy wrapped the redhead tightly in her embrace as her body was racked with sobs, "Oh Willow, you aren't evil. Your one of the greatest human beings I know, you're far from evil. I can't answer why you did those things, maybe you aren't meant to know, or maybe you just aren't ready to handle the answer. Then again maybe it's as simple as chalking it up to your magic addiction."

"No, it wasn't just because of my magic addiction. I know that if I put it all on my that then it's like I'm trying to avoid taking responsibility, cause sure when I was all juiced up I had no control over what I did…or who I hurt." She finished in a choked whisper remembering how she had nearly gotten herself and Dawn killed. "The times I used magic on Tara whether it was a forget spell, a compulsion spell, or anything else I did, I was never under the influence of a magic high it was all me. So I ask again am I evil?"

"Yes Will you're evil, or at least have evil in you. I'm not exactly a saint over here though, I mean remember how I neglected any and all responsibilities when you brought me back, and yeah I know people give me a lot of leeway cause I came back from heaven, but still I'm the slayer I should be able to cope with things like that. Furthermore looking at the woman Dawn has become I owe that more to you, Xander, Tara, Giles, hell even Spike and Anya contributed more to helping raise her than I did and I can never forget that I neglected that responsibility. So are you evil? No. Do you have the capacity for evil? Yes, everyone does and it's something we all struggle with every day."

"Thanks for the pep-talk Buffy."

"Anytime, hell I think it helped me about as much as it helped you. I'm just glad that things between me and Dawn have been good since we moved up here."

"You know before the potentials started showing up I was contemplating sealing you two in a room till you worked out your issues." Willow said with a somewhat mischievous grin on her face.

"You realize that one or both of us would've ended up dead if you'd done that Will." Buffy said also with a smile. "And if one of us survived we would've probably come after you." Buffy knocked her friend backward with a playful growl.

Willow fell backwards on the couch with Buffy ending up on top of her. Their eyes met and the playfulness was gone, replaced by something Willow hadn't felt in a long time. Buffy could barely register any feeling at all she swore her heart stopped when she looked into Willows deep green eyes. Her mind was running at a million miles per hour but it wasn't doing anything useful. Her eyes finally left Willows gaze taking in the beautifully soft pale skin with light freckles all framed in vibrant, fiery red hair. She saw Willow's firm red lips and finally had a clear thought, she quickly pushed it away and tried to make her brain have a thought that didn't involve kissing her best friend, but she wanted to feel Willow's lips so bad. Suddenly all functional thinking in Buffy's brain stopped when Willow brought their lips together, gently at first as though testing the water before diving in. Then Willow's hand was on the back of Buffy's head as she deepened their kiss pressing their lips together firmly. Willow's tongue brushed gently against Buffy's firmly closed lips and they parted slightly, another pass and Willow soon found herself exploring her best friend's mouth with her tongue. Their tongues met in Buffy's mouth and for a few glorious moments all was right in the world.

Willow's wonderful world came to a screeching halt when Buffy suddenly pulled away and before anything could be said ran up the stairs to her room. Leaving a hurt and confused Willow on the couch. _Oh my Goddess, did I take it too far? Dammit I shouldn't have kissed her, though I really wanted to and I'm pretty sure she did too. I should've let her make the first move. Damn I hope she doesn't hate me._ Doubt, anger, and sadness crashed through Willow's mind. She cried curled up on the couch unable to fall asleep wondering if her friendship with Buffy was salvageable.

Upstairs sitting on her bed with her knees hugged to her chest Buffy was facing a war of her own in her mind. _Oh my God she kissed me! What does she expect from me? Am I gay? Dammit why did I run from her? I hope she's not mad at me. God her lips taste good! I need to talk to somebody, but the person I'd talk to is probably as confused as me right now. Oh God I think I hear her crying! I am such an idiot! Should I go to her now or wait till morning? No, this isn't something that can wait until morning. I just hope she isn't pissed at me._ Buffy slowly and silently made her way back downstairs still unsure why she had fled the room earlier. When she got to the bottom of the stairs she saw Willow lying with her face turned toward the back of the couch. Thinking her friend was asleep she turned to go to her room once again, but froze when she heard from behind her, "It's alright Buffy I'm still awake."

Turning to look back at Willow saw the redhead now sitting in the middle of the couch with wrinkled clothes and red eyes that appeared to be still producing tears. Buffy walked over unsure what to say now that she was standing there. Both of them were silent and unmoving for what seemed like an eternity. Then Willow broke the awkward silence, "I'm sorry Buffy. I guess you probably want me to leave." Said the redhead as she stood to walk to the door. Buffy was still so shocked that her friend already had the door opened before she quickly moved to place her hand on Willow's shoulder.

"No, Willow don't go. I should be the one apologizing; I shouldn't have run off like some thirteen year old girl. I was just so surprised when you kissed me I didn't know what to do. Part of me wanted to stay and keep the kiss going, part of wanted to stop and think about what just happened and another part of me doesn't think it really happened. Guess I did the typical Buffy thing, if I don't understand what's happening then it's time to run the other directions and damn the consequences."

"Well I think we should probably talk it over before jumping to one thing or another, we need to decide if this is what we really want cause if we don't both really want it and still go through with this development in our relationship it could really fuck up our friendship. And Buffy I just have to say I really do want this, but if you decide you don't wanna give this a real shot I can go back to just being best friends. You don't have to answer right away either, just remember I'm still your friend no matter your choice."

The next day everyone had jobs and school except for Rory and Willow. So Buffy let Willow take the Jeep to pick up Faith from the airport while Rory worked on the red heads car. Waiting near baggage claim Willow found her mind drawn to thoughts of Buffy and the events of last night. She was still zoned out when a certain brunette nudged her shoulder, "You still on the planet with us Red?" asked a chuckling Faith.

"Oh, Faith, hi, yeah…um, guess I kinda spaced out there. It's good to see you." The witch says giving the Dark Slayer a friendly hug, "So how was the flight?" she asked leading the way to the parking lot.

"5 by 5 Red. How's everyone been since I saw y'all last?"

"Well Xander runs his construction company, Tara works as his secretary/accountant, Anya and Buffy run The Magic Box 2, Dawn is about to graduate High School, it kinda sucks for her having to make up two years because of the events in Sunnydale, but she hasn't really complained that I know of, she somehow ended up being for the most part a better person than the rest of us could hope to be. And lastly I am about ready to establish a coven down in Portland. That pretty much brings you up to speed on us. What about you did you ever get around to taking your GED test?"

"Sounds like things are mostly the same as last time I talked to you guys, Dawn has always been wise beyond her years. And a coven huh? Way to go witchy one!" The Bostonian bumps Willow's shoulder playfully as they get to the parking lot and load Faith's minimal luggage before climbing in the front seats. "Yeah I finally got my GED, G-man threatened to chain me to the chair if I didn't just get it over with. Now he's trying to convince me to take some college courses, and I guess now that it's not up to just me and B to save the world anymore that it's something I should seriously consider. The problem though is that I never thought it was an option so I don't know what I'd wanna take. What about B has she gone back to school yet?"

"You should seriously consider taking a few college classes, Buffy's planning on going back again I think she kinda wanted to wait for Dawn to graduate before she made her final decision though." Willow answered as she began driving herself and Faith back to the Summers' house. The duo continuing to talk on multiple topics for the remainder of the trip.

Later that day at Roosevelt High School, Dawn had just finished fourth period and headed to the cafeteria for lunch. She got held up after class to quickly finish an assignment before handing it in to the teacher, then quickly headed off to eat lunch. She pulled out her cellphone and started typing a text to Tara when she felt a cloth, dipped in something with a strong and slightly sweet smell, covered hand cover her mouth as the persons other hand wrapped around her torso trying to pin her arms, but before the attacker can get the second arm locked around her Dawn instinctively grabbed the hand over her mouth quickly yanked said hand away while she simultaneously turned to face the person not releasing the arm and delivered three quick and powerful knee strikes to the man's torso and abdomen. Still holding onto his arm with one hand while the other grabbed the back of his head and quickly dealt a strong kick to his left knee causing it to buckle, as her attacker fell she landed two quick hammer fists to the base of his neck knocking him out cold. Picking up her cellphone she placed a call to a particular law firm in Los Angeles and in much less time than it would take for the cops to arrive, a trio of well-built men in street clothes and dark sunglasses showed up and carried the unknown attacker away to be questioned by associates of Wolfram & Hart.

The rest of the day went by with practically no drama, no more than is typical anyway.

When Dawn got home from school Buffy and Tara were still at work and Rory and Willow were outside working on Willows broken down car. And Dawn herself was standing frozen in place in the living room doorway staring at the woman sitting on the couch. Faith rose to her feet as soon as she saw Dawn standing there. As she opened her mouth to speak Dawn silenced her with a wave of her hand and turned from the room saying, "Not ready talk yet Faith, sorry." Before she quickly ran up the stairs to her room, leaving the Bostonian slayer standing there fighting back tears.

"God I really fucked up with you didn't I Little D?" Unable to handle being left alone with her thoughts Faith went outside to see if she could help Rory and Willow with the car.

By the time Buffy got home Rory and Faith were almost done with a complete engine re-build on Willow's car. Buffy glanced at Willow with one eyebrow cocked up. "They've been like that since shortly after Dawn got home from school, like they've known each other for years." Willow responded to the unasked question.

"I told you it was just a blown seal!" Faith said emphatically as they close the hood of the car.

"No, you said it was a cracked cylinder, dumbass!" Rory shouted playfully shoving Faith handing Willow her car keys as they walk up to her and Buffy on the front porch. "You should be good to go Will, but I suggest you take either Faith or me with you on a test drive before heading back to Portland."

"Thanks guys." Willow said sincerely accepting her keys back, "So what was wrong with my jalopy anyway? In layman's terms please."

"Well before Faith came out to help you know I replaced the fuse and the thermostat. That fixed the problems with the overheating and the dashboard displays disappearing." Rory explained.

"Then when we started it up we heard a weird sound hence the engine rebuild. So your car should be good for many, many more miles. Maybe next time we'll rebuild the transmission for you." Faith finished, only half-joking about the offer.

"Hell we could get the transmission redone in no time at all!" Rory exclaimed completely serious.

"If you guys do that I'm gonna have to insist on you letting me pay you." Willow protested.

"Hell no you aint paying us!" The gear heads shouted simultaneously.

"If you really wanna pay us fix something to eat and make sure B stays away from the stove." Faith offered to make Willow more comfortable with all she and Rory were doing for her.

"Hey! That's just rude!" Buffy shouted in mock hurt, but not able to keep the smile from working its way across her lips.

Willow and Buffy head into the house to get dinner ready while the two new found friends get back to work on their new project.

As dusk turned to night Rory and Faith put the last few pieces back onto the car and headed back to the house still talking and joking with one another. When they both freeze in their tracks as a pale figure stepped out of the shadows, "Oi! So you're the druid huh. Never thought I'd get the chance to meet one." Said the figure to Rory before turning to Faith, "Slayer," He continued with a slight nod, "Dr. Broody sends his greetings."

Faith resumed her walk to the house as though there was no one there, "Spike I would say it's good to see you again, but I try not to lie that blatantly anymore." She remarked unable to hold the half-smirk from working its way across her face.

"So I take it your Spike." The druid more stated than asked stepping forward to take in the master vampire before finally extending his hand in greeting.

Spike looks at the young man for a moment before taking the offered hand and grinning, "Shaking the hand of an extinct creature, not quite as impressive as I thought it'd be…no offense mate."

"None taken, so are you welcome around these parts?" Rory asked indicating the house.

"Oh yeah, I was here just two weeks ago for the nibblet's birthday."

"Well I guess we might wanna head inside then." Rory said finally making his way into the house followed shortly by the peroxided wonder.

Spike barely got through the door before he was nearly tackled in a hug from Dawn. "Well hello to you too little bit."

Rory and Faith went wash up for dinner, after which the entire group, Xander and Anya having been called over by Buffy, sat down to go over the new information on Mr. Big Bad. The information provided by Spike gave details of legal suites and court cases as well as major sales and purchases by Mithos and Co. at least until the Angel Investigations team took over operations of Wolfram and Hart at which point he switched to own of their rival law firms.

Faith then handed Buffy the packet of Giles had sent with her, "And don't bother askin me questions neither I don't know nuthin more than what's in those files." Buffy nodded to her sister slayer as they began sorting through the new intel.

Once the Scoobies had sorted through the papers at least three times they just sat there staring not really knowing where to go from there or what to do with their new found information. "Well this guy must have some major mojo workin in his favor to stay hidden all this time. Cause he obviously doesn't mind leaving a paper trail." Said Buffy gesturing widely at the papers scattered on the Summers' dining room table. "The question is what now?" She finally asked everyone began shaking their heads not knowing what course of action to take.

"I guess I can try talking to Brigit or The Morigan and see if they can help us, but chances are he has the help of at least one god. So I don't know how much it'll help, plus there's the fact that most deities aren't very helpful for any cause, let alone a good one, but maybe if I call in a favor with them…"

"Wait a minute." Willow interrupted a look of shock and disbelief evident on both her and Tara's faces, "You are owed a favor by Brigit, god queen of the Celtic deities, and The Morigan, Celtic goddess of battle, death, and prosperity? How?"

"Simple Thor insulted them and they asked me to kill him, and I did." Rory's answer caused everyone's jaw to drop except for Anya.

"Bout time someone took him out, he was a major prick." Said the ex-vengeance demon.

"How did you manage to kill a god?" Dawn asked remembering back to the trouble they'd had with Glory.

"Well most pantheons of gods were once mortal and therefore are never truly immortal. However they become rather hard to kill, usually having multiple protective spells woven around themselves, as well as mystically enhanced armor and weapons. I don't have much trouble getting through magical shields so I decided to give it a shot, each time I fought him I was able to tear down his shields but could never get past his armor. So I sought out the only other druid I know of and borrowed his sword, Fragarach "The Answerer". It has two main special abilities, when held to a person's throat they will answer three questions truthfully and second it will cut through any physical armor or shield. We fought once more and well I guess he's in the hall of Valhalla now. I would have died as well if one of the Valkyries hadn't healed me for ridding them of Thor."

"Wow." Said the Key her eyes wide after hearing the incredible story.

A few hours later the group began to disperse Buffy, Spike, and Rory went on patrol while Willow and Tara washed the dishes and Dawn helped Faith get settled into the study on the couch that folded out into a bed. As Dawn turned to leave she felt a hand gently grab her arm. "Dawn? Listen I know you said you weren't ready to talk yet and I understand that, but also know that I've changed a lot, even since the last time you saw me. I know you don't wanna hear it right now, but I need to talk to you soon." Faith said, the sadness obvious in her voice.

She looked at the floor as Dawn turned toward her. She felt a hand lift her chin until she was looking the taller woman in the eye. "I know you need to talk Faith, and there's things I need to say as well. We'll talk soon I promise, it's just with all that's been going on I haven't had time to get my thoughts in order. To be honest if it weren't for a few conversations I've had with Tara, I would probly still be acting super childish and just ignoring you. I swear that in a day or two I'll be ready to talk, maybe I'll even take you for coffee at the original Starbucks." Dawn finished with a sincere smile before turning and leaving the room. Leaving Faith with hope that maybe she could get her old friend back.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** When I started this story I thought I had a good idea as to what was gonna happen. However the characters (as well as my muse) have tied me up, gagged me and left me in the corner while they ran away with my story. That said thank you all for taking the time to read my story, I apologize for the sporadic updating, but I'm working on a few different stories at the moment so please bear with me. Thanks again.

**Chapter 8**

Over the last few days Dawn had been rather busy, between training with Buffy, Rory, and Faith, getting ready for graduation, and studying magic with Willow and Tara, she was starting to get a bit irritated about having no down time so she convinced her sister to let her stay home from school that Friday and just chill on her own while everyone was at work, Rory had found a job at a local mechanic and Faith was spending most days at the Magic Box II. So, after sleeping in until 11:00 a.m. Dawn had the house to herself to relax.

After getting cooking herself a nice brunch she watched TV for a while, but by 1:00 p.m. she grew tired of that and decided to go to the garage and sort through what few things of Joyce's they still had. They had not been able to save much, but knowing that there was a chance of the town being destroyed Buffy and she had boxed up a lot of things that meant a lot to their mom. Though it had been several years since Sunnydale got swallowed up they still had not gotten around to going through those boxes. It wasn't that they were not ready to do it, they had just got wrapped up in settling into their new lives in Seattle and their free time had been filled with helping set up the Slayer Organization and averting a few minor apocalypses. Dawn decided that she should wait for Buffy to be around before going through their mom's things, so she went out in the back yard to practice her yoga and then began practicing her fighting techniques.

While going through the yoga poses and the martial arts stances she was able to focus her mind. She always found herself doing either yoga or Tai Chi when she wanted to calm herself or if she had to work something out that was troubling her. Since Faith had come into town Dawn had been talking with Tara about her past memories (whether the events really happened or not did not truly matter the fact remained that all involved remembered them) and she had been talking with school counselors as well as a couple psychologists about her abandonment issues for years. With the shrinks she could not fully grasp what they tried to tell her but her talks with Tara had helped her put it all together. As she was smoothly transitioning from form to form in her backyard under the warm early summer sun in northern Washington she finally fully understood what all the professionals had been trying to tell her, part of the problem had been her hiding how she felt from her friends and family. Now that they knew her issues they had been able to forgive one another and move on. When she finished her exercises she stood basking in the sun, soaking in its nourishing rays like a plant her eyes closed as she worked over her last few issues. When her emerald eyes opened they held a new peaceful resolve and she was ready to continue on with her life, _Thank God for mini-vacations!_ She thought with a smile.

Meanwhile in an office building across town Dawn's girlfriend was having a hell of a day. It seemed that now that summer was starting to show itself the people of King County wanted to have all kinds of projects contracted and finished quickly, there were so many calls that Xander had to open up his lines to help alleviate some of the pressure off Tara. By the end of the day both of the Scooby members were exhausted, but always the optimist Xander, with a smile on his eye-patched face, said, "Well Tara, look on the bright side with this many new projects we'll make our quarterly earning requirement in just next month!"

"Damn you for always seeing the good. Dammit I wanted to mope about having a tough day!" yelled Tara in mock anger, but unable to hide her patented half-smirk.

"I'll admit it's been a fucking miserable day. So tell ya what, let's take tomorrow off. You know relax, take Dawnie out, whatever."

"Sounds good to me Xanman. So I guess I'll see you Sunday then?"

"Sure thing, I'm glad Buffy decided we should all start getting together for a weekly family style dinner. So how are you and Dawnster doing anyway?"

"We're doing alright. It's been a little tough ya know with all that's goin on, along with the fact that she's got finals and graduation coming up…well we haven't had as much time as we'd like."

"Well you have tomorrow off, I suggest you take her out somewhere."

"Thanks Xander. I think I'll do just that. Well guess I'll see you later then." Tara waved goodbye as she got into her car while Xander locked up the office.

Back at the Summers' residence Buffy walked through the front door to see Dawn sitting in the living room with a stack of boxes in front of her. "Hey Buffy. How was work?" asked the younger girl.

"Hey Dawn, today wasn't too bad at the shop, moderately busy, basically just enough customers that Anya didn't complain about not making enough money. So what's with the boxes Dawn? Packing for college already?" Buffy asked with a voice dripping with sarcasm.

"No, not packing yet. I figured it was about time to go through some of mom's stuff. I think we've put it off long enough."

Buffy silently nodded her head before responding, "Yeah I think you're right. Let me go take a shower and then I'll go through it all with you."

A couple hours later Faith and Rory had come in and instinctively given the sisters space to reminisce together. Rory went into the kitchen after deciding to fix dinner for everyone while Faith went to take a shower. A bit later Rory went to tell the girls that supper was ready and saw them apparently finished with sorting through the boxes. He saw a framed picture of a middle-age woman with light brown hair. He picked it up reverently and asked, "Is this you mother?"

"Yes." Buffy answered as she and Dawn smile, remembering the good times they had with her.

"She was a beautiful woman, I see where you two got your looks. Tara and Willow both told me a little about her. I wish I'd gotten a chance to meet her." He said placing the picture back on the coffee table.

"I think she would've liked you Rory." Dawn said as they headed into the dining room where Faith had just finished setting the table.

The small group sat around the table enjoying the meal and each other's company. Eventually Buffy realized that someone was missing from their usual dinner group. Turning to Dawn she asked, "Hey Dawn, where's Tara? She usually eats dinner with us, is she not feeling well?"

"She texted me earlier that they'd had a really busy day at the office. So she went home took a shower, ate, and went to bed. Oh, that reminds me. I hope you don't need me for anything tomorrow, cause Xander decided to give everyone Saturday off, so Tara and I are going out."

"Fine by me. Is Tara gonna drive or will you need the Jeep?"

"I'll have her pick me up. Makes more sense that way."

"What about you guys? Any plans for tomorrow?" Buffy inquired of the two house guests.

"Not really." Faith replied, "Probly give G-Man a call and hang out at the shop again and train. Unless you need me to do something else."

"Well the garage is closed Saturdays, but I got permission from the boss to work on a…um…"special project" for a client." Rory said looking at Buffy while shifting his eyes momentarily to Dawn when he said "special project". Buffy nodded in response, their gestures going unnoticed by the other two women at the table.

The next day Dawn and Tara spent together wandering around downtown Seattle. They entered a store every now and then, but for the most part they just walked along the sidewalks, hand in hand, talking and enjoying being close to each other. The rest of the Scooby gang was busy with their own projects. The magic shop was busy with customers and research and other such things. Xander was in his shop back home working on a project to keep himself busy.

When Saturday evening finally rolled around Tara and Dawn walked through the Summers' front door, locked in a passionate kiss while trying not to drop the few bags they each carried. Finally breaking the kiss they set their bags down and at Tara's suggestion that they move this to the couch. As soon as they stepped into the room they were greeted by the rest of the Scooby gang yelling "SURPRISE!" Hanging from the ceiling was a banner that read, in colorful block letters, "CONGRATS DAWNIE!"

"What's goin on guys? What're we celebrating?" Dawn asked feeling quite confused.

"Well Dawn, your final grades came in the mail, yes I opened them and we decided not to wait till graduation to celebrate. So congrats sis! As far as we're concerned you're done with school. Also we wanted to throw the party now in case we're busy with the big bad when you actually graduate." Buffy replied to her sister.

The group began talking and reminiscing and munching on hors d'oeuvres. Xander and Anya presented Dawn with her own ornately carved weapons chest complete with a section for a few books, built-in speakers and an iPod dock, Willow gave her a book on rare herbs with recipes for potion that require those particular herbs. As Dawn was thanking everyone for their gifts Buffy got a text and led everyone onto the front lawn. Once everyone was standing outside, except for Spike who lingered in the shade of the front porch, a car, driven by Faith, with a big bow on the hood pulled up in front of the Summers' house. Faith put it in park, shut it off, got out and tossed the keys to a speechless Dawn, "Congrats D!" Faith said with a genuine smile as Rory pulled up in his GTR.

Dawn, still in awe walked up and gently trailed her hand across the sun warmed metal down one side of the car. She couldn't believe that sitting before her was a brand new BMW M3 convertible, it was metallic blue with black leather interior and brushed aluminum trim. Buffy walked up behind her, "This is from me, Giles, Angel and his crew, and Tara. Rory and Faith did a bunch of work on it, mostly cosmetic stuff like the paint job and the interior. We hope you like it Dawn." Once Buffy finished speaking everyone got another round of rib crushing hugs from the very happy young woman.

**(Same Time, Unknown Location)**

"Damn it! That bitch of a slayer and her friends are getting closer and closer to finding where we are and we have yet to launch a single successful attack!" Yelled an irate man, as he paced back and forth in the shadows of his dimly lit office. Finally sitting back behind an antique oak desk, leaning back in his chair while rubbing his forehead with one hand he once again addressed his assistants, "It's obvious to me that your observations are well founded and accurate. We will stop relying solely on human operatives from now on. However I don't want to just hire demons and witches and warlocks and allow them to run loose, any outside help will be required to work with one of our teams. I want Buffy Summers taken down, but I want her to hurt first, especially after what she did to my good friends Caleb and Richard Wilkins III. You may start hiring outside help, but any mistakes will be laid on the two of you, understand?"

"Yes sir!" Replied the man and woman as they bowed then hurried out of their bosses office.

"You think our revised plan will work?" Asked the embodiment of the former mayor of Sunnydale as he stepped out of the shadows. Noticing the unhappy glare he receives from the man behind the desk, "I'm just asking, Mithos, because to quote one of the slayer's allies," the image shifting to a familiar bleach blond figure, "_The thing about the Slayer is she is a whiny little thing, but when it comes to fighting she does have a slight tendency to win_."

"That may be true my lord, however I have faith in our plan. I believe we will succeed and the blood of the slayer and all who help will be spilled in revenge of the allies we have lost in this war!" Mithos replied a maniacal glint in his eye.

"Yes, my friend." Said The First Evil having now taken the form of the fallen priest Caleb. :And to quote one of my favorite passages of the Good Book, _And blood came out of the winepress even unto the horse bridles…_" Shifting its image once again, now to the likeness of the petite blonde slayer herself, "That just gives me warm fuzzies." Said the fake Buffy while giggling.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **Okay ladies, gentlemen and various monsters and demons, things are gonna start getting more action packed in the coming chapters. How you might ask? Well you're gonna have to keep reading to find out. Will Buffy and Willow get together? Will Faith and Dawn work out their differences? Will Giles ever wear an outfit that doesn't include tweed? All these answers and more will be answered in upcoming chapters so stick around and enjoy.

P.S. Please leave a review, reviews make me feel all warm and fuzzy. Whether you love it or hate it, it still shows you actually care, and that gets me…right here *places hand over heart*

**Chapter 9**

(Downtown Seattle)

The next day was a pretty busy day for some of the Scoobies, Buffy and Willow were spending the day together, neither would call it a date, in their minds they were doing the best friend thing, hanging out, going shopping, taking breaks at cafes and espresso stands. Around noon they decided to take a break from their shopping adventure and have lunch in a small mom & pop style restaurant. They continued their idle chit-chat until the main courses arrived, then Buffy started in on the topic she had wanted to bring up that day, "Will, I've been thinking a lot about, well us, meaning you and me, as well as thinking hard about myself and how my life has been. Thinking about who I've been and who I want to be."

Willow opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off when Buffy raised her hand, indicating she was not done speaking. Willow nodded, her face a mask of calm, but on the inside she was cringing, thinking she knew where the conversation was going, _Here it comes Rosenberg, she's going to tell you you're like a sister to her, that she loves you, but not in THAT way. Just remember what you promised yourself, stay strong, accept whatever she says and you can cry when you get home…maybe you can even talk to Xander, he knows what Buffy's rejection is like._

"I have never had what anyone would consider a normal and stable relationship. With Angel, well first off, HELLO vampire slayer in love with vampire? That's gotta be Dr. Phil worthy, or at least Jerry Springer, but with Angel I don't think it was truly love, it was more of an obsession, if I had just staked him when I had the chance after blowing up the judge, who knows how many people would still be alive. Then there was Parker..." they both shudder at just the mention of the creep, "Well let just say mistake with a capital M. Then there was Riley, my relationship with him was the closest to normal I've probably ever had, but it wasn't really fair to him, I wasn't in love with him, I was in love with the idea of being in love. It took me a while to understand that he was right, and now looking back I'm glad I didn't get to him before the helicopter took off. We are both better people now. I don't know where I'm going with all this Willow, I had the whole speech worked out last night, but none of it wants to come out right now. I guess what I'm trying to do is tell you what you already know, I don't think I know how to have a healthy relationship like you would deserve, but if you're serious, and willing to deal with my shit, and help me out when I get it wrong. Then I want to give us a shot."

Willow took a second to absorb what Buffy had said then reached across the table taking Buffy's hand in her own, 'Buffy I'm not one who could give out relationship advice either. First off there's Xander, my best friend since kindergarten who I had a crush for like forever, but could never tell him how I felt, then when both he and I are in good relationships with people who care about us we start making out with each other behind their backs, eventually we got caught, which led to Cordelia falling and almost dying. I was able to work things out with Oz, but then he slept with someone else. Then when I wanted to work things out he just leaves town, barely taking time to say goodbye. Then I meet Tara at college, I'm sure you've figured out we had been seeing each other for a couple months before I introduced her to the gang. I was so stupid in that. Then Oz showed up again and because I couldn't tell him I was in love with Tara I almost lost both of them. When I finally worked things out it seemed so good, but I realize I never really treated Tara right, yes I loved her, I still do honestly, but I treated her like a possession, much like her fucking family did. I fucked with her mind, and I can't be upset with her at all for leaving me after the mistakes I made, honestly she probably should've left sooner. I barely even flinched when she left though cause I started with Amy after that."

Buffy cocked an eyebrow when she mentioned the other blonde witch, "Oh yeah," Willow continued, "You probably didn't notice because you were dealing with the Trio, but Amy and I were together for a while. Actually it was right after I wrecked the car and hurt Dawn in the process that I stopped seeing her. After that of course there was Kennedy, but after Sunnydale we started having problems, we liked each other, but we ended up agreeing that our relationship most likely came about due to the whole "we might die tomorrow, so let's comfort one another" scenario. But since then and I really wish I didn't have to tell you this, but it's kinda important for you to know, anyway…I've probably fucked half the women in Portland since moving there. I could never get a real relationship started when I tried, so eventually I stopped trying. I'd meet a girl, talk for a while, then either take her home or go home with her." Willow finished staring down at the floor thinking that this bit of information would change Buffy's mind.

A few seconds later she felt a small hand gently lifting her chin, when she looked up she saw Buffy's hazel eyes staring lovingly into her own green eyes, "Willow, while that last part wasn't the best thing to here, I still love you." She said as she brushed her lips gently against the red head's, "Though I have to ask, in light of you, um, revelation, have you been, um…taking care of yourself."

A look of confusion crossed Willow's face to quickly be replaced by realization when she understood what Buffy meant, "Oh! Yeah I have. I saw my doctor every couple months, I'm clean."

"Good." Buffy said kissing the witch again, "Cause I don't wanna be plagued by doubts later. Now finish eating, I have some more stores I wanna visit." They finished eating before continuing on with their day, walking through the stores hand in hand.

(First Starbucks, Pike's Place Market)

Dawn and Faith take their mochas to a table in the back corner of the building. They sat in a rather awkward silence for several minutes, both girls just staring at their drinks. Faith knew there wasn't much left that she could say that she hadn't tried to say over the past few years, so she left it up to Dawn to start the conversation. A conversation the dark slayer had been both dreading and hoping to have for a long time. "I know it wasn't your fault." Dawn said, finally breaking the silence, "I think I've always known it wasn't your fault that you had to leave. I also know that you thought you couldn't tell me everything, cause you didn't know that my sister was the slayer your watcher had told you about. You didn't know that I would understand, I'm guessing you thought I would say you were crazy and think you were making up excuses for leaving me…" Dawn paused and looked up seeing Faith nod in confirmation, "I know I shouldn't have held you as the cause of all my issues, I don't even know why I did, but I could always trace everything back to our last night together in Boston. I also know that even with the shit that went down when you got to Sunnydale that it was better than your life at home with your mom. I'm sorry that things happened the way they did, I wish the monks had created me sooner, maybe if I had actually existed back then things would've been different, who knows, cause I've found that the memories the monks created for me sometimes don't mesh with how I actually act, so maybe I would've been able to help you. I know what ifs don't matter, it's just things I think about sometimes." Dawn stopped for a moment taking a sip of her mocha.

"I think I know what you mean Dawn. I will say this though, while I can't actually remember things from before you were actually there that don't involve memories of you. I can remember emotions and how I felt. The night before the monks sent you to Buffy I was sitting in my cell, I was remembering all the things I had done and that there was no one who really cared about me, yeah there was Angel, and don't get me wrong, I love dead boy to death for all he did to help me, but I know that night I had pretty much given up. The next morning I woke up still majorly depressed and shit, so I pulled the knife I'd made out from under my mattress and put the blade to my neck, just as I was about to pull it across my throat and end it all I suddenly remembered you, all these "memories" came flooding into my mind and I knew I wouldn't have been happy if I offed myself, no matter how bad things were between you and me. So remember that Dawnie, whenever you get depressed about not really existing, remember that I wouldn't be around anymore if you hadn't been made." Faith said as a single tear made its way down her cheek.

Dawn, with tear flowing freely said, "Oh Faith, I should've said back in Sunnydale, but I forgive you for anything you've done real or monk created memories and I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to say that." Dawn and Faith enjoyed their drinks in comfortable silence for a few minutes as they calmed their emotions. Dawn spoke again saying, "One reason I regret not forgiving you sooner, what might've happened between us? Would we be together today. I wish we had had a chance to find I what could have happened after that kiss? And before you say anything, no there is nothing wrong between me and Tara; it's just one of the many things I wonder about."

Faith just smirked and nodded understanding, then a mischievous grin crossed her face, "You know, Dawnie, if you and Blondie ever need an extra pair of hands…" She trailed off.

Dawn's eyes clouded over as her mind was overwhelmed with images of naked Tara and naked Faith with their hands exploring Dawn's own naked body. Dawn shook herself from her daydream and immediately blushed, she knew that Faith pretty much knew what she had just been thinking, so she reached across the table and slapped Faith's arm, "Dammit Faith! Why you gotta make me think shit like that when there are other people around, and here I thought you had changed." Dawn said in mock anger.

Faith chuckled as she shook her head, "Still the same old Faith in some ways D."

"Alright, well why don't we head out and explore the shops in the market and enjoy the rest of this beautiful day?"

"Sound like a plan D." Faith said as they both grabbing their mochas, "Shall we milady?" Faith asked holding her arm out to Dawn.

"We shall." Dawn replied with a nod as they linked arms and walked out to the car laughing at their own silliness.

(Summers Residence)

While the others had gone out for a day on the town, Rory and Tara had decided to hang out at the Summers' house and just chill. Talking and reminiscing about their past, for lunch they had Chinese delivered and Tara told Rory about when her family came to Sunnydale to try and make her come home. "Bout damn time someone put you "father" in his place, I wish I'd been there to see it." Said Rory when Tara finished the tale.

Several hours later everyone had made their way home from their day out and Xander and Anya had come over for supper and the group once again found themselves gathered around the table, discussing their week and talking a little about what they were going to do about their current bad guy.

After the meal was over and everyone had gotten caught up with one another they retired to the living room where they talked, joked, laughed, and played a couple board games until Xander and Anya decided it was time for them to head home. Buffy and Dawn went to their rooms with their lovers, while Rory and Faith called Spikes cell to see if he wanted to go to a club with them. The druid, the souled vampire, and the slayer spent the night together drinking, dancing, and enjoying each other's company into the wee hours of the morning. The trio stayed out so late that Rory had to bind a special shield around Spike to protect him from the rising sun as they escorted him back to the hotel room that Wolfram & Hart had provided for him. Luckily the binding didn't require a lot of energy to create since there wasn't a lot of natural ground in the concrete jungle they were in. Best of all for Spike, he was able to stand out in the sunlight and feel its warmth for the first time in over a century, "Well, Druid, Slayer, this is my stop. I hate to admit this, and if you mention it I'll deny having ever said it, but I actually had fun last night. Oh and thanks for not letting me turn into a pile of dust. Anyway it's time I got to my room, besides I'm sick of seeing your bloody ugly faces." The vampire finished jokingly.

That morning Dawn had woken, ironically when the sun rose. She lay there in bed watching her blonde lover sleep, running her hand gently through the soft golden locks, then trailing her hand gently around Tara's ear, finally tracing her fingers along the older woman's strong jawline before placing a gentle kiss of her soft full lips. When Tara stayed asleep Dawn wanted to see just what it would take to wake her girlfriend up. So began placing kisses up and down her smooth neck causing Tara to quietly moan in her sleep, making her way down her lover's bare body she began to caress her full breasts, gently squeezing and massaging them mesmerized by her girlfriend's beauty. She simultaneously flicked her thumbs across both nipples eliciting another moan from her sleeping lover, who still refused to wake. Deciding to continue on with her experiment Dawn moved her mouth further down her lover's body gently kissing and licking a trail from her beautiful pink lips, down to her full, firm breasts. Dawn began kissing, sucking, and licking Tara's right breast before finally taking the, now rock hard nipple into her mouth, she began to suckled on it for several minutes while simultaneously flicking it with her tongue and gently biting the hard nub. Dawn switched back and forth several times lavishing the same attention on both breasts, still her partner remained asleep, though she was no longer breathing the calm slow breath of deep sleep. Knowing that Tara would be awake soon Dawn moved her right hand further down her lover's body to explore her warm wet folds while continuing her ministrations to Tara's breasts. She moved her fingers gently and slowly rubbing the outer lips before slowly moving past and exploring her inner folds, knowing Tara would be awake soon she gently entered her lover with two fingers, slowly pumping her fingers in and out. Tara finally fully awoke when Dawn gently flicked her clit with her thumb. "Dawn?" Tara gasped out, now fully cognizant and feeling the pleasure flowing through her body while Dawn laved her nipples and fingered her pussy with increasing speed while adding a third finger causing Tara to cry out in pleasure, "Oh Goddess Dawnie!"

Dawn moved her mouth up to give Tara a deep, passionate kiss before moving her lips down to join her fingers in giving her girlfriend pleasure. She flicked Tara's clit with her tongue before sucking it into her mouth. Between Dawn's mouth on her clit and her fingers moving inside her, Tara became lost in a sea of pleasure moaning and crying out incoherently, unable to form intelligent words any longer. Dawn knew Tara was close so she increased the force of her suction on Tara's clit and bit down gently while simultaneously curling her fingers inside her girlfriend, putting pressure on her g-spot and effectively pushing her over the edge. Tara's hips bucked violently and her body went stiff as she cried out her lover's name as the waves of pleasure from her orgasm crashed through her body.

After giving Tara enough time to relax Dawn gently removed her fingers causing Tara to shudder at the feeling of loss emptiness she felt from having Dawn's fingers removed. Dawn gave Tara another rough and passionate kiss before licking clean the fingers that had jus been inside her lover. Kissing along Tara's jawline she gently nibbled on her earlobe before whispering, "I love you Tara. I'm gonna go take a shower then cook breakfast. You should take a shower too once you've recovered. Unless you wanna hang around the office smelling like sex all day."

"And who's fault would that be?" Tara inquired looking at Dawn with one eyebrow raised her usual half-smirk plastered to her face.

"Why Tara, are you implying that it is somehow my fault?" Dawn asked looking as innocent as possible.

When Dawn got downstairs she found Buffy and Willow making out on the couch, "Yes! I won the pot!" Exclaimed the younger Summers sister, causing the two women two jump, then blush at having been caught.

"Dawn, that wasn't what it…okay that was exactly what it looked like." Said Buffy deciding to not even try lying to her sister.

"What pot?" Asked Willow cocking up an eyebrow.

"Well Tara, Xander, Anya, and myself had a bet as to when you too would finally get together. Xander had bet it would be before Willow finished college, Tara had bet it wouldn't be until after the coven was fully established. Anya and I actually get to split the pot, we bet it would be before I graduated. Anyway when we made the bet we each put one hundred dollars into an account that Giles set up for us so he could be like our bookie, or whatever, so by now with the interest rate it's up to…" Dawn trailed of doing some quick calculations in her head, "just over sixteen hundred dollars! Wow! So are you guys gonna tell everyone soon, cause even though that wasn't a necessary part of the bet, I can hear my eight hundred dollar share calling my name? And by the way I am _very_ happy for you guys."

"Thanks Dawn." Buffy said taking Willows hand in her own, "And yeah we wear gonna go by Xanders office this morning to tell him and Tara…before I go to work at which point we'd tell Anya."

"Doesn't look like we'll have to wait to tell Tara. Looks like you weren't the only one to have a "guest" over tonight baby." Said Willow nodding toward Tara who had just descended the stairs.

"Baby?" Asked the blonde witch before the realization dawned on her, "Dammit! I lost the bet! I was so close to. You guys couldn't have waited like another month or two?" She finished jokingly.

"Tara baby I think this calls for a bit of celebration. If you'll make the pancakes, funny shapes of course, with blueberries and chocolate chips, then I'll cook the eggs and bacon." Dawn finished as Faith and Rory made their way to the main part of the house from their respective rooms after showering. Seeing the blonde slayer and the red haired witch sitting together on the couch holding hand and stealing kisses, Rory just gave them a smile and a nod.

"Bout damn time." Faith mumbled.

(**Three Weeks Later**)

(**London, England Slayer Headquarters**)

Dawn had graduated with honors at the top of her class and the Scoobies, and Spike, along with Angel and his original team of Wesley, Gunn, Fred, and the now half-demon Cordelia were in London so they could pool their resources to nail down just where Mithos' headquarters was located and how he operated. Willow and Fred had started running hacking programs to try and break through the bad guy's security system. After two weeks of running through different programs while the rest of the Scoobies studiously reread what little information they had. "We've got it!" The witch and physicist both shouted.

The rest of the gang rushed over to see what had been found. They hadn't fully broken through yet, but they had a location. Dawn dialed in the coordinates on a digital map and when the location came up Xander, Dawn, and Faith simultaneously shouted, "You've got to be shitting me!"

"What is it?" Buffy asked still next to the computers with her girlfriend.

"It's a fucking volcano, such a James Bond rip-off." Answered Faith from next to Dawn, struggling to keep herself from touching the girl.

Tara noticied this and after her initial Spike of jealousy she tilted her head and began wondering about Faith. She didn't know much about how the dark slayer used to be aside from what she had been told by the others, but she knew that the girl had changed from what she was. Tara was impressed that she didn't even try to pull Dawn away when she so obviously loved the girl. While she did not know the old Faith she liked the Faith she did know, she was a smart, strong, sexy woman…_Wait! What!? Sexy? Well yes okay so she is, but you've already got a smart, strong sexy girlfriend that you are madly in love with Tara Maclay so calm down those hormones. Yeah, but what is it they say? It's okay to look right? You just make sure you stick to just looking girl!_ Tara thought to herself as images of Faith with Dawn, then herself with Faith flashed through her mind. She forced those thought to the back burner as she focused on her beautiful girlfriend who was just leaving to go train with Buffy, Angel, Spike, Faith, Wesley, Gunn, and Xander. She decided to join Anya and Giles in researching spells that might help them in their current circumstances while Willow and Fred kept working at the computers.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** thank you to all my faithful readers that are following this story. This was a hard chapter to write in many ways. The story is drawing to a close as well, but I have a sequel in mind already so we'll see what happens. Thoughts are in italics and telepathic communication is in bold. Here's the newly edited chapter 10.

**Chapter 10**

(Slayer Organization Headquarters; London, England)

When the group left to go to their rooms for the night they were not really any closer to having a way to deal with Mithos than before they arrived in Europe. They had a tentative knowledge of his possible hideout, their lack of certainty meant that they would need to send a team to do some recon rather than just attack head-on.

The next morning the Scooby gang, along with trial members Faith and Rory, sat at a table in the Slayer Organization headquarters to go over possible plans of attack. Xander, with his recently reacquired soldier memories and hyena attribute, thanks to a spell provided by the Devon coven, which bound both of the souls that had previously possessed him to his own soul, leaving him in charge, but allowing him to access what the other spirits had to offer, was able to confer with the soldier's soul within him to point out weaknesses and strengths to the volcano stronghold. After they had their plan worked out the recon team was picked out. It was quickly agreed upon that Buffy would stay behind for this mission since she was the one that Mithos wanted. Rory volunteered and was given a nod from Buffy and Xander, he purposely avoided Tara's worried look. Soon they had a small team put together Rory and Xander would lead followed by three slayers that had been at the battle of Sunnydale; Kennedy, Vi, and Amanda and at the last minute Faith insisted on going as well. At Faith's volunteering Dawn became somewhat distraught, but managed to keep it from showing. Tara sensed Dawn's mood change and was a little surprised to feel a twinge of fear herself when the dark slayer was added to the scouting team.

Now that the team had been decided, they put their heads together to decide on equipment. Rory and Xander insisted on full black tactical gear, including ski-masks, the two of them would also carry guns as well since they were dealing with primarily humans, the slayers stuck to their melee weapons and crossbows and would hopefully have minimal contact with the humans. Everyone was issued a special piece of headgear that contained a video camera, microphone, and earpiece for communication and intel gathering. Xander and Rory went to choose their weapons, Xander chose two suppressed MP5Ks while Rory picked up an FN P90 with suppressor and a VBR Belgium PDW also suppressed they both also selected two silenced M9 Berettas along with combat knives and various sight attachments for their weapons. The two men went to the on-sight shooting range to ensure they were familiar with their weapons before returning to their friends.

The group spent the remainder of the day just hanging out and forgetting about what was coming up for them. After dinner Anya dragged Xander to their room for the night Willow. Buffy, Willow Tara, and Dawn chose to spend some more time with Rory, Faith, and the three other slayers going on the mission. Eventually Buffy and Willow went to bed saying goodnight, Kennedy and Vi soon followed suit, walking off to their room arm in arm. Faith laughed lightly as she shook her head at the pair, "Never thought Kennedy would actually win Vi over. I mean Vi didn't show much interest when they met in Sunnydale." Dawn commented.

"Oh come on D, you really don't know what was goin down between those two?" At Dawn's confused head shake Faith continued, while Tara sat to the side with a knowing smirk on her face, "Lil Red was only playing hard to get cause she didn't want an "It's the end of the world and I want you to fuck my brains out relationship". Plus the fact that Junior was still all over her after Sunny D got all craterized just made it mean so much more to Lil Red when they finally did get together. And they been together ever since too, which means something cause Junior's past is about as spotty in the "relationship" department as mine."

"Just to clarify, Lil Red is Vi and Junior is Kennedy right?" Asked Rory and Amanda confirmed for him while Dawn soaked in the new information.

"Well I always thought of Kennedy as just a dumb brat back then. Is it being with Vi that's mellowed her out or what?" Dawns asked.

"I think that's it." Amanda replied, "At first Kennedy was still her self-centered bitchiness, but after a few times where me, Faith, or Giles had to intervene in their arguments before they came to blows Vi got to the point where she'd had enough and started packing her things to move to a different facility. Suddenly everything clicked for Ken, it really broke her down that she might lose Vi for good if she didn't quit acting like a selfish child. That was about three or four months after we got here. Their two year anniversary is coming up soon I think."

"Good for them." Tara commented and the remaining others nodded their agreement.

As the hour got later Amanda stood to leave, but before she walked off she turned to Rory and surprised Faith, Dawn, and Tara that she had lost a good bit of her own shy awkwardness, "So how do you feel about the whole sex in case we die idea Rory?" She asked.

Rory was caught completely off guard, but recovered quickly, "I would say that it is of the good." He answered with a smile and he stood to follow the lanky brunette to her quarters.

"Wow, just when you think you know someone…" Dawn said shaking her head with a smile.

"It's the quiet ones you gotta watch out for D, But you should know that by now. Bet Blondie's a beast in the sack." Faith responded with a nod toward Tara.

Dawn opened and closed her mouth in shock as her face turned a light shade of red, but Tara surprised them both when instead of stammering and blushing she replied in a sultry voice, "You just wish it was _your_ name I was screaming don't you Faith?"

Dawn and Faith were both taken aback by the comment and both simultaneously had images of the dark slayer's head buried between the blonde witch's legs causing her to cry out in pleasure. They shook themselves from their thoughts before they went too much further in their imaginings. Faith sat quietly for a few moments while she tried to fight off a growing desire she felt building within her. When it became unbearable she stood and walked to her own room after saying a quick goodnight to the other two girls. Seeing that everyone else had retired to their rooms the couple got up to do the same. Dawn wrapped her arm around her lover, pulling her close and gently nibbling her ear, "You know that was pretty mean what you did to Faith just a minute ago hon." The Summers girl whispered in Tara's ear.

Tara let out a moan and then replied as they closed their door behind them and laid down on their bed, "I know," She answered in a slightly chastised voice, "But it's still true." She argued as she began gently running her hand over her girlfriend's flat stomach.

"Is it?" Dawn asked, her eyebrow raised, "Or is it you that _wants_ to be screaming her name?" She continued half teasing, but with a serious tint to her question.

Tara froze and searched her lover's eyes, but found no jealousy or anger in those green pools, only curiosity and, was there maybe hope there too? "I don't think I'm the only one Dawnie. I know you loved her once and I think you still do, more than as just a friend. If you wanted something with her and she agreed I wouldn't stand in your way. I know you would never intentionally hurt me, but I'm sure Anya can tell us countless stories of women wronged by men who never thought they'd cheat on their wives. And I don't want you to think I don't trust you baby, cause I do. I would just rather know that I was sharing you with someone than wonder one day down the road."

"Tara, first of all I would never willingly or intentionally hurt you. Secondly yes, I think I have feelings for Faith, but, and you need to be honest with me now too, I think she's been growing on your heart in recent days as well, has she not?"

"Yeah, I've noticed I have feelings for her. I noticed it for sure yesterday when she was hovering over you when we discovered the location of Mithos' headquarters. I saw how close you two were and instead of being jealous my mind wandered into sexy thoughts."

"So we are two girlfriends, deeply in love with the woman currently inour arms, and we both think that we're falling in love with a third girl, who almost definitely has feelings for one of us and possibly for the other as well?"

"Yes, I think." Tara replied only slightly confused by Dawn's condensing of the situation, "And to think we aren't even having this conversation on a hellmouth."

They both chuckled at the joke as they drifted to sleep in each other's arms, each one with her thoughts focused on a certain brunette slayer from south Boston.

Down the hall Faith lay awake in her bed after having finished trying to "take the edge off" as she would say, but she still felt a distinct ache between her legs after the comment Tara had made, _Do they even know what they do to me? Why would they? They have each other already and they're great together too. Face it Faith you realized a long time ago you'd never be worth finding love like that. You may redeem yourself a bit for the evil you've done, but you're still just a worthless piece of white trash. So be happy for Dawn and Tara, and be happy you were able to work things out with Dawn, at least you've gained her friendship back._ Faith thought to herself as she drifted off to sleep, a single tear escaping down the tough girl's cheek as she truly believed the words in her head.

Late the next day Faith, Amanda, Kennedy, and Vi stood and waited at the helicopter while Xander and Rory strapped on their tactical gear; guns, knives, bulletproof vests, night vision goggles, even a couple flash-bang and smoke grenades. Those staying behind gave last minute hugs to their loved ones, Buffy talked with each of the slayers individually, even Faith. Once the pilots started the rotors spinning the team boarded the helicopter Dawn surprised Faith giving her a quick hug, "Be careful out there, I know you're gonna be busy watching everyone's backs, but promise you'll watch out for yourself too."

"Always do D, we'll all be back in no time." Faith replied.

Tara who was already standing right next to them leaned closer and placed a hand on Faith's shoulder, "Just come back in one piece, don't take unnecessary risks. You have three other veteran slayers with you, Xander has the full soldier training again and the hyena perks too, and Rory well he's a druid with mercenary training so don't feel like you have to do anything crazy let them help, be a leader Faith, part of that is using the resources you have at your disposal." Then in a lower voice that only Faith could hear she added, "By the way, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable by what I said last night." With that she and Dawn stepped away to stand with the others.

Faith appeared stunned for a brief moment then with a smirk she boarded the helicopter with the rest of the team, "Let's roll!" She ordered.

"Yippey ki yay motherfucker!" Xander and Rory shouted simultaneously causing Faith and the other slayers to shake their heads at the movie reference.

(Dormant volcano, Central Europe)

The team arrived in a secluded spot near the volcano where the helicopter landed to let them disembark. The plan was to sneak in, scout intel, and sneak out again via the helicopter, but if this went to Hell Willow, Tara, and the Devon coven were standing by with a mass teleport spell ready. The team of six was soon inside the facility with the pilots waiting guarding the helicopter.

The corridors were dimly lit due to the late hour and the group quickly found their way to a poorly guarded supplementary control room. The slayers incapacitated the three guards quickly and Amanda started working on the computers after producing a USB memory stick from her pack while Xander and Rory guarded the door. They were soon on the way back out, their mission nearly complete, all of them were thinking the same thing, but were all afraid to voice their worry, it had been _too_ easy. When they arrived back at the helicopter they found both pilots dead and were quickly surrounded by well-armed soldiers on all sides. Xander instinctively tried out the telepathic link Willow had established between the two of them long ago **Will we're gonna need that teleport spell pronto! We're surrounded at the helicopter and both pilots are dead.**

**We can't get you out right now…something's blocking the spell we can bring you back by assigning one person to a small group, but we can only do four at once that way.**

Xander relayed the information to Rory and Faith while Mithos' men were trying to talk them out of their hiding place.

**Faith's orders are to leave her and Rory for last. Do it quick Wills, it's goin shitty fast.**

As soon as Xander's message was sent the firefight started and the two men returned fir with their sub-machineguns. Soon there was a brief flash of light that was at first mistaken for a flash-bang grenade, except there was no "bang". Soon Rorry realized that the other four were gone. Not knowing how much longer they would be stuck there he handed Faith one of his pistols. Several minutes later and they were quickly running out of ammo, the duo had made a good stand thus far and had counted for at least a dozen dead enemy minions, but as their bullets were depleted so followed their hope. However as Rory fired his last bullet he and Faith felt a charge go through them and they found themselves back at the slayer compound.

Unfortunately as the witches had finished the spell a lucky shot had hit Rory's neck just above the bulletproof vest. He lay on the pristine tile floor of the slayer headquarters, bleeding profusely. As people scrambled frantically around him he saw a pale skinned woman clad in a black dress, with jet black hair and green eyes standing unnoticed in the corner of the room. The Morrigan was waiting to escort his soul, **So this is it?** He asked.

**Yes child, your home now awaits your arrival in Tir na nOg. Brigit is waiting to greet you mighty warrior. It's time to tell the girl her true power, then you will be given time to say your farewells.**

Turning his focus to the two women kneeling by his head he reached up and placed his hand on Dawns temple imparting to her the knowledge he was allowed to give. He then turned to his childhood friend who sat firmly gripping his hand in her as they all knew there was nothing that could be done for him, none of the witches had enough power left to heal him so there was no escape from his final fate. **I'm sorry Tara, but I'm not coming back from this one. I wish you had let me help you more in dealing with your family, you and your mother deserved much better than that scum you had to live with. I'm not going to the same heaven you will be, but I plan on petitioning the gods to allow me to go to whatever heaven you end up in. When it's finally your time, many years from now I'll be waiting for you along with your mother. Until then live well, love Dawn…and maybe Faith too. Dawn's gonna need your support with what I revealed to her, she'll tell you about it when it's time. Now it's time to say goodbye mo cailin, The Morrigan is waiting for me**. With that Rory's body let out its last breath and his soul left his body with a peaceful smile.

With tears flowing unchecked Tara brushed her hands over Rory's eyes, closing his eyelids before kissing his forehead and finally sobbing uncontrollably as she lost her oldest friend.


	11. Chapter 11

** A/N:** This chapter was somewhat unexpected, it was originally gonna be something else, but my original idea didn't look good once I had it written down. So I took the first idea I came up with and ran with hope. Hope you like. Please read and review.

**Chapter 11**

Dawn was exhausted from the mental stress of the knowledge Rory had basically uploaded to her brain. She wanted to stay awake to comfort Tara, but she realized she wouldn't be able to. Everyone was busy doing something; it seemed that only she, Faith, and Tara were left without a task to do. "Tara baby? I wish I could stay up and be with you right now, but whatever knowledge…he gave me really wiped me out." She slowly rose to her feet, "So I'm gonna go to bed ok?" Dawn barely saw the nod of Tara's head that she understood, "Faith, I feel bad asking, but could you take care of her for me please?"

"Sure thing D." Faith answered without hesitating, "Are you gonna need help getting to your room."

"No, I think I can manage it. Thanks though."

Faith was unsure what to do, she had never had reason to try and comfort anyone. So she knelt tentatively by Tara next to where Rory had lain. She nervously placed her hand on Tara's shoulder, as soon as she felt the touch Tara turned and buried her face in the warrior's shoulder as she started crying again. She was remembering all the times Rory had been there for her, after the beatings she would get from her father and brother, until he walked in in the middle of one such beating when they were sixteen and put both her father and brother in the hospital, the numerous times he had chased off bullies and, after she had come out, the homophobes. As she remembered the stories she relayed some of them to Faith in a shaky voice.

The Dark Slayer just listened and the more she heard the more saddened she was by what the world had lost when the young man died. She felt…love maybe, for the boy who watched out for Tara throughout their childhood and realized if it had been for Rory, and Tara's mother intervening in the ways they had, Emily Maclay in training her daughter and showing her the beauty in the world and Rory defending her from the evil, then she probably would never have met this strong, beautiful woman.

Pulling herself back slightly from Tara's embrace she looked her in the eye, "Thank you for telling me those stories Tara," Faith said, feeling it was more inappropriate to use one of her patented nicknames at the moment, "Are you gonna be ok? Do you need something to eat or drink?"

Tara managed a weak smile biting back any further sobs for the time being, "I'll be alright eventually, and he wouldn't want me to wallow in my grief. I could probably use a glass of water right now." She answered.

They stood and walked down the hall while Faith kept one arm wrapped around Tara's waist to help keep her steady, though if she was honest she also liked the feel of the witch in her arms, but she wouldn't dwell on that right now. "Oh and thanks for being here for me Faith." Tara added as she rested her head on the slayer's shoulder.

"No problem T, happy to help how I can. Your girl would be here for you if she could." Faith answered and she could have sworn Tara said something, but even with their close proximity and her enhanced hearing she couldn't make out the words. "What'd you say T?"

Tara almost panicked, _Oh Goddess! Did I say that out loud? If I did I guess she didn't actually hear it. Should I just repeat it and tell her that my girl is here with me? No that'd most likely scare her off,_ "Oh, nothing, just more memories of Rory." She lied.

Faith stayed up with Tara the rest of the night while Tara told more stories about her and Rory growing up, some that Dawn had yet to hear, and periodically crying, but with Faith's presence coupled with the knowledge she would see her friend again someday the pain began to lessen…slightly. Eventually they fell asleep leaning against each other on one of the couches in the large den. That was how Dawn found them the next morning.

_Wow,_ thought the former Key, _They look really cute together._ She stood there just watching her lover and friend sleep. Dawn lost track of time and before she knew it Buffy was standing next to her. "Wow, guess Tara's exhaustion finally caught up with her."

"Yeah." Dawn answered, unable to break her stare.

Buffy heard something in her sister's reply, but couldn't place it so she shrugged it off, "So you think we should wake them or let them sleep?"

"Well Tara didn't eat anything last night and Faith would be pissed if we let her miss breakfast…so I casting my vote in favor of waking them up."

Faith heard the conversation and slowly opened her eyes, she was about to move when Dawn motioned for her to be still. Faith looked at the face of the woman sleeping on her shoulder and let a small almost unnoticeable smile work across her face. Dawn sat gently on the other side of Tara and started gently stroking her smooth blonde hair, "Tara baby," She said gently, "It's time to wake up."

The witch's eyes fluttered open and she was greeted by Faith's smiling face, "That's not a bad sight to wake up to." She said quietly, not realizing Dawn was next to her as she snuggled closer to Faith.

"Oh really? So would you like to spend some time alone with Faith in our room then _girlfriend_?" Dawn asked in a menacing tone, but when Tara whipped her head around Dawn almost broke down laughing at the shocked look on her lover's face and she could not hold back the smile that let Tara know she was joking not hurt by what Tara had said.

Faith however was looked a little uncomfortable from the short back and forth. _Damn I wish they were serious about that. Yeah right Faith bad enough you wanted Dawn alone before, now you're hoping for some sort of three-way? Like that'll ever happen, remember you don't deserve happiness for the things you've done._ She was drawn from her thoughts by Dawn calling her name.

"Faith…Faith…Yo F! Finally have your attention. Later on, like this evening, Tara and I were wondering if you like wanted to hang out with us and talk for a while."

_Oh crap! Did they notice something?_ She thought to herself, her mind racing at a hundred miles an hour, but her face managed to remain mostly expressionless, "Sure thing D. I dunno bout y'all, but I'm fuckin hungry." Replied the Dark Slayer as the trio stood and made their way to the kitchen.

Everyone gathered for a meeting after breakfast, Willow and Fred had gone over the information and schematics. "From what we found there should be no real surprises. Most of his soldiers are human, though he does employ some vampires and other warrior class demons, several Polgaras and even on Fyarl." Fred started.

"The most difficult thing with be to get past the small coven of black magic users he has, none of which are very powerful on their own, but together they're pretty formidable." Willow continued.

"Okay we have all that covered and it's easy to contend with, but what about Mithos himself? Anything special about him?" Buffy asked, Willow answered with a shake of her head. "That's okay, Dawn, can the Powers tell us anything?" She asked.

The younger Summers girl closed her eyes for a moment; this was one of the talents Tara and Willow had discovered in her, she could communicate directly with the PTB and several other pantheons, as long as she was contacted first at some point to establish the link. "Not really, not about him anyway." She answered after reopening her eyes, "So let's assume he's more than human. They were able to confirm that he's been talking to The First."

"Willow, do you think you and the coven can do something about The First? Maybe banish his essence to a hell dimension?"

One of the coven leaders spoke up, "I know of a spell, however it requires use of the Fae magic, which has been dead in this universe for thousands of years. If we had known _it_ was involved sooner the druid…I mean Mr. O'Brien could have done the spell. We shall have to try and modify."

"Actually…" Dawn said causing everyone to look at her, "According to what Rory showed me before he died. The Key can serve many purposes, one of the things I can do, is bring the Fae magic back. However!" She raised her voice as everyone began talking at once, "There is a price, more like a trade-off really. We get access, but so does the other side and it brings the faeries back in full force; incubi, succubae, leprechauns, etc. but we will gain strong allies as well chief among them being the druids, who will be re-strengthened by this reborn magic and through them the Tuatha Dé Danann. The Celtic gods who will also gain in strength. The ritual to get open the gateway for the Fae magic will not be life threatening to me, it will require a small amount of my blood, a highly powerful witch, the Powers recommend Willow actually, we will also need a little bit of Rory's blood," Dawn continued placing her hand comfortingly on Tara's shoulder who leaned into the touch, "And finally we will need one of the Tuatha Dé Danann, but I don't know how to contact them."

"You will not need to worry about that child." Called a strange yet sweet voice in the room, speaking in a thick Irish brogue. Everyone turned to see The Morrigan clothed in her typical fashion of a long black dress and next to her stood a woman wearing a suit of armor, similar to what Athena is often depicted wearing, only instead of bronze it is silver in color with beautiful gold accents. She carried the helm in her hand as her strawberry blonde hair flowed freely, framing her soft, pale face with piercing blue eyes. "I am Brigit, Queen of the Tuatha Dé Danann and this is The Morrigan."

Willow jaw practically hit the ground as she stared openly and Tara promptly fainted, but was quickly caught by Faith and Dawn, it's not every day you got to meet the Goddess you worship.

Once Tara came to again they managed to continue the meeting where they had left off. "So if we do this ritual where do we find someone to wield the Fae magic for the spell on the First?" Giles asked.

Brigit answered, "You ask the right questions Mr. Giles. If you choose to perform the ritual then we will revive Rory to perform that part of the spell, He has knowledge of Fae magic due to his druidic training." At Tara's hopeful expression she added, "We can only bring him back for the ritual my child, I'm sorry We would let him stay longer, but the way The Morrigan's magic works in this situation, it will be painful for him every moment. He knows the pain he will face and has already agreed. The rest is up to you, the Warriors of Light. I am sorry we cannot be more involved, but that is the rules of this war."

Buffy looked around the room at the various faces present, "I think most of us are willing to try it, but ultimately it is up to Dawn, Rory, and Willow." She said and the two goddesses nodded their agreement.

"I'm in." Willow said after brief hesitation.

Dawn looked from Willow to Buffy and finally to Tara and Faith she saw they were all ready to back her, whatever she decided to do. "Do I have any time to think about it?"

"You have nothing to really worry about from Mithos for a while he has the resources to bigger, but does not wish to become involved with anything more dangerous than vampires and other low level demons, unless they're non-corporeal. You can do the ritual whenever you wish, it does not rely on a certain time or alignment of stars, it only depends on the participants or "ingredients" if you will." The Morrigan answered this time.

"Then let me think about it for a day or two before I make my decision…if we do this the faeries will have full use of their powers correct?" Brigit and The Morrigan nodded, "How will we be able to fight them, if no humans have training?"

"We have a…I believe this eras word is "division", about fifteen thousand, druids prepared to be sent from Tir na nOg to be attached to covens around the world to begin training those who have the ability. Until there are enough trained individuals we will have several teams not dedicated to training ready to help out you and the other champions whenever a truly powerful evil faerie presents themselves," Brigit explained. "You are wise beyond your years Dawn Summers." She added with a smile, Dawn blushed at the praise.

A short time later Tara was still reeling from having actually met her Goddess, Dawn was sitting talking with her about the pros and cons of them doing the ritual, about all the good that could be accomplished with this new force. They also talked about the potential of what could be between the two of them and Faith, "Obviously we need to be delicate in how we approach her with this. I am certain she has feelings for us both, but I doubt she expects that anything could happen between the three of us. She is probably expecting our conversation later to be us telling her that we like her, but just as friends. She had some self-worth issues when I knew her in Boston, due in large part to her mother." Dawn said.

"Well, we just need to talk to her and then we'll see where she wants to go from there. No matter what goes on we will still have each other." Tara said before kissing her girlfriend.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** It has been brought to my attention that the fae are much more widespread than I originally realized, normally I would jump into researching this before continuing my story, however with how far this story has already progressed I've decided to continue on with my own diluted knowledge of the fae. I will continue to focus on the Celtic faeries because that is what I know. I realize that Rory was a bit of a "Mary Sue" type character and apologize for this, but hey, this _is_ my first story. Thank you to those who continue to read my ramblings, and those who review, you make me want to keep writing.

Further note, I don't use a beta so all mistakes are solely mine.

**Worth The Wait Chapter 12**

Later that evening Dawn, Tara, and Faith were walking in one of the gardens on the compound talking about recent events and about what they thought should be done about Mithos. After a while they were simply walking together in comfortable silence, they came across a small clearing in the garden which was surrounded on all sides by a hedge, with the only way in being an archway over the main path. The trio decided to sit and rest for a while, the hour was getting late and early summer breeze was cool, but they were protected from the cold by the tall hedge.

"Faith…" Dawn said a bit hesitantly, not really knowing how to carry this conversation, but knowing it was something both she and Tara wanted and had talked about several times.

"Yeah D?" Faith responded, _Great, here it comes. Whatever happens don't cry Faith._ She thought to herself.

"Tara and I…um…we wanted to talk to you about something, but I don't know how to start the conversation and we know that you don't like talking about the emotional type "touchy-feely" stuff so that makes it tough too. So will you hear us out before you say anything or take off?"

"Sure thing D. What did you and Blondie wanna talk about?"

"Well Faith," Tara joined in from her spot next to Dawn where they both sat facing the Bostonian. "Let's start by saying I know what went on between you and Dawn in the memories from before either of you went to Sunnydale. And don't worry I don't feel any jealousy over it. However I know from talking to Dawn that she still has feelings for you, and I think if you're honest with us and yourself you'll admit you have feelings for her still as well right? As more than just friends?"

Faith was silent for a moment, she was getting beyond nervous and well on her way to being just plain scared. She nervously eyed the entrance as she waited for the other shoe to drop. Tara and Dawn could see the emotions playing across the slayer's face and calmly waited for her response. _What are they playing at? Are they trying to get me to say it because they aren't sure how I feel or do they want to mess with me somehow? Oh grow up Faith! You know both Dawn and Tara better than that, they don't do stuff like that. Obviously they want some sort of conversation here so give them what they want and be honest with yourself and them._ Faith nodded after her internal conversation, "Yeah, I do still feel for you Dawn." She answered her fear and nervousness still apparent in her eyes.

"Now Faith, this is the part where we need you to hear us out and not to bolt off, okay?" Dawn asked, with Faith's nod she continued, "Tara and I love each other, very much, but we both also love you, maybe not in the same way we love each other, or for the same reasons, but it is just as strong. We know you're not emotional gal and that you've been burned in past relationships. We know that you've had a hard life and it's tough for you to trust people, but Tara and I think that the three of us could make a relationship work, just to be clear we aren't looking for just a threesome every now and then, or to just be fuck-buddies. If you're willing to try we want to have a real relationship."

Faith sat in stunned silence as Dawn's words and Tara's nods were slowly processed by her brain. She could hear the truth in Dawn's voice and saw the honest expression on Tara's face. "Why?" She finally asked, "Why would you want to be with a broken piece of white trash like me? You both know what I've done, what I'm capable of and how I've treated people I was supposed to care about."

Tara slowly reached out her hand and placed it gently on Faith's cheek. Faith instinctively closed her eyes and leaned into the loving touch, "Faith, we do know how your past has been. You did do some terrible things, true, but you have also done amazing things in spite of the bad situation you came out of. I know that your time in Sunnydale wasn't very good, and it wasn't solely your fault. There were two adults who should have seen the troubled girl that you were, one in particular who should have seen it and gotten you help, shown you how a person could care. You had three peers who should have been there for you, but all of those people were too involved in their own lives to be there to help you. I know you've worked past a lot of this stuff with Giles, Buffy, Xander, and Willow. I know Joyce would be proud of how you turned out too."

"We don't expect anything from you Faith; we just want a chance to be with you. Give us a chance to earn your trust. If you need time to think that's ok. Whatever you decide we'll always still be your friends Faith." Dawn added

"I…I do want to try, but it scares me to want this. I know that risking myself being hurt is part of it, but I've been burned enough in the past that it's hard to let anyone in. I still don't see why the two of you think I'm worth it, but if you're willing to give us a chance then I will too…I just don't want to be hurt." Faith said, her voice trembling slightly.

Tara and Dawn moved to sit on either side of her, wrapping their arms around their soon to be lover, "We can't promise that we will never hurt you, but we can promise that we will never hurt you intentionally." Tara said.

"We won't make you jump right into this with us, Tara and I realize that you might not be ready to be where we are in our relationship. We will go at this at your pace." Dawn added running her hand gently up and down Faith's arm.

"Furthermore, for this to work we need to all be open with each other, there will be times when two of us want to be alone, after all there are three people in this relationship and we can't have any one being jealous of the other two. So if any of us start feeling left out we need to talk to the others and let them know." Tara continued, "We both love you Faith and we want you to feel like you are an equal partner in this relationship, because that is how we see you." The blonde witch finished before placing a gentle yet passionate kiss on Faith's lips, causing the slayer to gasp slightly.

With that kiss the fact of their new relationship was made real to Faith. She felt something stir inside her, she did not recognize the feeling, but it made her happy as she returned the kiss. Tara pulled away, breaking their kiss and Faith felt her head being turned before her lips were met by Dawn's. The trio continued making out in the garden for what seemed like only a few moments. Dawn and Tara's hand began to wander on Faith's body and she stiffened, causing them to stop immediately, "Sorry…" Faith said hanging her head.

"Hey, don't be sorry about that." Dawn said cupping Faith's chin and gently raising the Bostonian's head until she was again looking them in the eye.

"It's okay if you're not ready for more yet. We're content with whatever you give us. We love you because of who you are, not what you can offer us." Tara said with a soft smile. "Do you want to come to bed with us, or would you rather go to your own room?"

"I think I'll sleep in my room tonight, I think I still need to process everything. I'm glad we talked though, I was beginning to go a little crazy with these feelings I was having toward you two." Faith answered after brief contemplation.

"Ok," Dawn said, "We'll walk you to your room then."

They walked together back to the main building and when they got to Faith's room they stopped outside her door. "I'm glad tonight happened, even if I wake up tomorrow and find out it was just a dream." Faith said with and uncharacteristically soft smile.

"Tara and Dawn both smiled in return, each taking one of the dark slayer's hands in their own and each placing a kiss on her cheek, Dawn on the right and Tara on the left. "We'll see you in the morning Faith." Dawn reassured her.

"Sleep well Sweetie." Tara added.

After kissing Faith goodnight Dawn and Tara returned to their room, both sensing the joy and excitement radiating off the other. "Oh my God! I can barely believe it! She said yes!" Dawn squealed once they were in their own room before pulling Tara into a deep passionate kiss.

"I know, it feels amazing doesn't it?" Tara asked rhetorically once they pulled out of the kiss, "Though remember what I told her applies to us too, we need to communicate with her and each other even more now to avoid anyone becoming jealous of the other two." She said repeating part of their conversation from the garden.

"Do you think we should put our relationship on hold for a while and focus on Faith?" Dawn asked curiously.

"I don't know sweetie, it's a good idea, but I'm not sure I want to unless Faith would prefer it. Maybe we should bring it up to her tomorrow."

"Good idea Tare-Bear, leave it up to her."

The pair climbed into bed together, still smiling as they drifted off to sleep.

**A/N2:** I realize this chapter is kinda short, but it seemed like the right place to stop. In other words I didn't want to interrupt the fluffiness of this chapter by having to go back into the "war-talk" so I hope you enjoy.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N:** Sorry for the amount of time between updates, I got busy suddenly and the ideas began flowing more slowly. This story is beginning to wind down though, I wanna do a sequel for it, but that may take quite a while. Anyway hope y'all enjoy the chapter.

**Chapter 13**

Dawn decided to talk too Brigit and The Morrigan before she chose what she wanted to do. So after breakfast the next day the Scooby Gang along with Giles, Kennedy, Vi, Faith, and Angel's crew sat around the table for meeting Dawn summoned Brigit and The Morrigan. When the two members of the Tuatha de Dannan appeared they were almost surprised at how soon Dawn had called them, having expected the young woman to take more time to think on her choices. "Have you come to a decision already child?" The Morrigan asked curiously.

"Not exactly Morrigan, my decision will be decided depending on what answer you give to the only questions I have. First, do we absolutely need the fae magic to defeat The First? And second, if we change our minds in the future and decide we need it can we perform the ritual at will?"

Brigit answered, "You do not _need_ the fae magic, it would make it simpler, but there is another spell for defeating The First Evil. I cannot tell you what it is or where to find it either, due to the foolish laws we higher beings govern ourselves by. I can tell you that the book or books you need are either in this compounds library or at the coven's library."

The Morrigan answered the second question, "You can perform the ritual at any time, as I told you before all that is required is The Key, a druid, and a powerful witch."

"Then I think we should pass on bringing the fae magic and by way of the magic the faeries themselves back at this time. Even though you said we would gain allies I don't think we want the enemies that we would gain either, in other words I'd rather we didn't further complicate things. Sorry guys." Dawn said apologizing to her friends.

"No Dawn that's quite alright," Giles said, "I think I can speak for most if not all of us here that you have made the best decision for our current circumstances. The only reason some of us might be a little disappointed," He continued gesturing to himself, Willow, and the witches from the Devon coven that were present, "Is simply because we were a bit excited about studying this "new" magic."

Once that was over with the team began making plans to attack the enemy base while the witches and other researchers began scouring the libraries for the book that Brigit had alluded to. Dawn was walking through the kitchen taking a short break from all the research when she spotted Faith who was sitting on the counter eating a sandwich. She smiled at the dark haired slayer and hopped up to sit next to her on the counter. "Wassup Faith?"

"Not much D, just taking a break between training sessions. How goes the research?" Faith replied with a small smile.

"Well, it's going…we've found references to The First, and some spells that kinda banish him for a short time, but nothing permanent so far. Do you think I made the right choice?" Dawn asked as she was slowly becoming unsure of the wisdom of her decision.

"Honestly D I think it was the best way to go. I never woulda thought of the repercussions of allowing that ancient magic back to Earth." Faith said placing her hand on Dawn's knee, "But then again I am kinda dumb."

Dawn became upset hearing Faith putting herself down, "Hey! I don't wanna hear you talking about yourself like that again, understand? I get it if your being light hearted, but you girl are not dumb. You might not have all the schooling that some people have, but you are far from being dumb and doing dumb things from time to time doesn't qualify, we all make mistakes. So no more talk like that, okay?"

"OK," Faith answered somewhat stunned by Dawn's reaction.

"Good," Dawn said, "Cause I'd hate to have to kick your cute little ass because of it." She joked giving the dark slayer a seductive smile.

"Damn D, we better both get back to work before I jump you right here in the kitchen and while you, me, and blondie might not mind I'm sure the others won't necessarily be so understanding."

"You're probably right about that one." Dawn said sliding off the counter, but before she left the kitchen she pulled Faith down for a quick rough kiss, then left before the slayer could react.

Faith just stood stunned for a moment then smiled once she processed what had just happened. She turned to head back to the training room, her lips still tingling from Dawn's kiss.

The next several days passed by in much the same manner the warriors trained, the researchers studied and they all compared notes. Willow and Buffy continued to grow closer in their relationship and spent as much time together as they could. The same was true for the triad of Dawn, Tara, and Faith. At first Faith was a bit skeptical and only really showed any emotion toward Dawn, but she gradually became just as comfortable around Tara. Xander, of course noticed how much time the trio were spending together when they went training or researching.

One day he stopped Dawn in the hall and just asked her as he was not willing to leave his thoughts as assumptions on his part, Dawnie…um…I don't want ya to be mad if I'm wrong here, but you and Tara are together. I know that, but are you two with Faith two? If not I'm sorry for asking, it's just the three of you have been really close lately."

"Yeah, we are." Dawn answered nervously after thinking for a moment then decided the Xander was the first one she would have told anyway, "But please keep it to yourself for now. Tara and I are fine with it being out in the open, but Faith is actually nervous about how everyone will react, especially Buffy. And just so you know we _are_ in an actual relationship, it's not just for the physical stuff. We've only talked to a couple of the witches from the coven about it so far. Faith wanted someone to talk to that wasn't part of the "core group" you know. And it turns out that a three-way relationship is quite common for mystical beings, me, the Key and Faith, the slayer, and magic users, Tara, the witch. I realize I'm kinda babbling now, but you're not freaked by this are you?"

"No way Dawn, I'm not freaked at all…intrigued is more accurate for how I feel. You realize that you guys have just added more fuel to my fantasy land though." He said as he gave the nervous young woman a quick hug.

"Xander!" Dawn exclaimed while playfully slapping his arm, "Typical guy reaction much?"

"Well for what it's worth I'm glad you told me, or at least were honest when I asked anyway. So just outta curiosity when do you plan on telling the rest of the gang? Cause though I usually notice some things before everyone else doesn't mean they're all blind."

"O really don't know, it's something the three of us have talked about a couple times. Mostly Faith's worried about Buffy trying to kill her when she finds out."

"Remember though Dawn, Buffy and Faith have really become pretty good friends since Sunnydale. It may go better than you think."

"I know, but I think we're gonna wait till after the coming battle is over before telling everyone. If only to not throw anyone off for the fight."

At that moment Willow used her telepathy to inform the leaders that she had found something and to meet her in the dining hall to discuss her finding. In a matter of a few minutes the long table in the dining hall was occupied by the Scoobies, Angel's crew, Giles, Faith, the senior slayers; Kennedy, Vi, Amanda, and Chao Ahn (the Chinese slayer had just returned from a vacation visiting her family), and the representatives of the Devon coven. "Alright then, it appears that everyone is here now. So what did you find Willow?" Giles asked once everyone was seated.

"Well I don't know for certain if it'll work, but I found a combination of spells that may help us defeat The First. I thought it was worth calling everyone together for though, I figured Giles and the sisters of the coven could tell us whether the spells will work or not." Willow replied.

"Well tell us child and we will see what can be done." Said one of the coven's witches.

Willow laid out her finding as well as how she thought the spells could be used and what the assault plan could be. After a brief discussion the witches came to a unanimous agreement that Willow's plan would work. Xander, Giles, and Angel however saw a few flaws in her assault plan, but they were quickly remedied. "It will work, but if we perform this spell and make The First corporeal then no one here would have the power to defeat him, except for Willow, but we'll need to use a lot of her power to perform the spell." Said one of the witches.

"What about the slayers?" Dawn asked.

"If all the slayers were to attack at once they may be able to overpower him, but he will have a vast arsenal of magic at his disposal." Replied the coven leader.

"I may have an answer for y'all." Fred interjected, they all looked at her curiously, "Illyria." She added.

"What?!" Exclaimed everyone at once.

"I thought she had been banished after that coven drew her soul out of you." Xander said.

"No," Anya spoke up studying Fred closely, "They didn't take her soul out of you did they?"

"They weren't able to. Instead our souls became bound together, Illyria has as much control over my body as I do, but since she gained access to my memories and emotions she hasn't really wanted to interact with the world. So she cast a spell to make everyone think she had been removed from me. She's willing to help in this fight though, apparently The First insulted her before she was defeated so long ago and she's ready to get her revenge." Fred explained.

Everybody was speechless for several minutes until Faith broke the silence, "Wicked," She said the others all nodded in agreement.

Several hours passed as plans were made then discarded, new plans were made and discarded, and discarded plans were re-evaluated and cannibalized to form brand new plans. Once they were finished with the meeting it was nearly midnight and everyone was tired. After getting something to eat they all made their way to their rooms, with Faith, Dawn, and Tara volunteering to stay behind in the kitchen to clean up.

The three women were making small talk and joking with one another as the washed dishes and put things away when Faith suddenly changed the mood of the conversation, "Dawn, Tara…" The two women looked up knowing Faith was being serious due to the fact she had used their real names, "I think I'm ready to tell Buffy and the others about us and I think we should do it before we go into the fight, in case any of the group doesn't make it back. I don't want them getting to the afterlife and find out and think we were hiding anything from them."

Dawn and Tara stepped up to their girlfriend and hugged her with tears in their eyes, proud at how confident she had become in their relationship, "Only if you're sure Faith." Dawn said.

"We don't want you to do something just because you think we want it. Dawn and I want you to be ready for whatever stage we move to in this relationship." Tara added.

"You guys already know I've never been in a real relationship…and no matter how big I talked I've only ever been with three guys, if you count soldier boy when I was in Buffy's body…and I wanna move to on in this relationship with you two, but…I'veneveractuallybeenwithanotherwoman." Faith said the last part quickly as though it were one word, but after a brief pause Dawn and Tara were able to understand what she'd said.

"You've never been with a woman?" Dawn asked and Faith nodded.

"Hey sweetie that's nothing to be embarrassed about sweetie." Tara said, "We aren't gonna be upset just cause you're inexperienced."

"So I guess those prison stories aren't all true then?" Dawn asked, making Faith laugh and successfully lightening the mood.

"No, at least not in my case. My cellmate was already someone else's bitch and I mostly stayed outta other people's way."

"We're serious though," Dawn added, "We'll go at your pace, we want you to be comfortable and don't want you to feel like we're pushing you into anything."

Faith kissed both of her girlfriends barely believing just how lucky she was, "I wanna spend the night with you two, I don't know for sure how far I'm ready to go just yet, but I don't wanna be alone tonight."

"You never have to be alone again Faithy." Tara said as she and Dawn stood on either side of the dark slayer, intertwining their arms around her waist as they walked with her to their room.

Tara and slowly made their way over to the bed, making out the whole way while Dawn shut and locked the door before joining her girlfriends. As the trio took turns passionately making out Dawn said, "Remember Faith, if we do something you don't like…"

"Or are uncomfortable with just say so and we'll stop." Tara finished when she pulled back from kissing Faith so that Dawn could take over.

After a few minutes of tongues battling back and forth Dawn slowly moved her hand up Faith's torso until it was resting just touching the underside of the slayer's breast. After a moment when Faith didn't tense up or say anything Dawn reached up a little further until she was gently cupping her girlfriend's breast. When Faith stayed relax Dawn began to gently massage the mound of flesh in her hand causing Faith to moan. Tara moved her hand to join Dawn's on Faith's other breast, but when she began to gently squeeze Faith tensed up and pulled away. "Sorry," She said hanging her head, embarrassed that she had had to stop them.

"Hey baby, what did we tell you about apologizing for something like this? We understand that you might not be ready." Dawn said gently lifting Faith's chin in her hand.

"Do you just wanna go to sleep, do you wanna talk, or do you wanna make out some more? Do you maybe wanna watch me and Dawn…what?" Tara asked when Dawn and Faith just stared at her.

"Wow T, you're quite the horndog aren't you?" Faith asked.

"I prefer sex-kitten…or as Dawn likes to call me at night, goddess." Tara said causing Dawn's face to turn slightly red.

"Only when Tara's not calling me Mistress Dawn." The former ball of energy retorted and seeing the look on Faith's face added, "We do sometimes bring dominance/submission and some light bondage into play, but you don't have to jump into that right away, or ever if you don't want to. We just tried it one day and found we liked it."

"It's not something I've ever really thought of, but maybe. Anyway if it's OK with the two of you I think I wanna try and get some sleep." Faith said.

Dawn gave Faith an oversized shirt and a pair of sweats and the three got changed and performed their nightly rituals before climbing into bed. Dawn and Tar laid down on either side of Faith and reached their arms over the slayers body so that they were all three locked in a comfortable embrace. Slowly they drifted off to sleep, all three thinking how lucky they were to have two loving, beautiful women in their lives.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter 14**

The next morning there was a knock on Tara and Dawn's door and Buffy asked if they were awake and decent. Dawn not even thinking about Faith being in bed with the two of them told her sister to come in. Buffy walked through the opened door talking cheerfully, "So are you guys planning on staying in bed all day? We have work to do preparations to make. By the way do you know where Faith went, no one saw her go to her room last night and she's…laying in bed with you…um I'll just step back out and see you all in the dining hall." She scrambled to say the last bit while hastily leaving the room.

"Crap, I'm sorry Faith, I know you weren't ready for us to tell Buffy yet, but I forgot all about that when she knocked." Dawn said mentally berating herself for not thinking fast enough.

"That's alright D…honestly I'm glad she knows…and I think we may have broken her." Faith reassured her.

Tara added after a moment, "Let's hurry up and get out there, I wanna see the look on Willow's face when she finds out. I'm not sure whether she's gonna be rendered speechless or go into a serious babble-fest."

"I'm voting for a string of one word questions." Dawn said.

Dawn was right, when they got to the dining hall Buffy was whispering in the red haired witch's ear. Willow snapped her attention to the trio entering the room, "What? When? Really?...What?" Was all redhead was able to say for several minutes.

"Yes, several days ago, really, and yes. Does that answer all your questions Will?" Dawn asked.

"I think I need to sit down." Willow said.

"You are sitting down babe." Buffy responded placing her hand gently on Willow's shoulder and followed it up with, "I know it's really none of my business, but I'm gonna ask anyway. Is this for real, or just a temporary three-way thingy?"

"It's a real relationship Buffy." Tara answered.

"Oh well…um in that case I guess all I have to say is I hope it works out for the three of you." Buffy said slowly trying to make sure she did not say the wrong thing.

Buffy's words released a lot of tension from the room and lifted a huge worry from Faith's mind. Later on when the meeting started Dawn, Tara, and Faith told the last of their friends who were out of the know about their relationship. Faith was still surprised by how accepting everyone was about their unconventional three-partner relationship, but then she realized that with the war they were fighting their friends would see opposing their relationship as petty and pointless. "So now that that's all out of the way," Giles said after everyone had settled down a bit, "Shall we finish formulating our plan of attack?"

The rest of the day was spent polishing the rough edges of the plans and strategies that the different specialists had worked out, Xander, Wolfram & Hart's human strike team and the watchers worked out the plans to take out the human opponents while Willow, Tara, and the coven leaders worked on the mystical side of the fight, which left Buffy, Faith, the slayers, and Angel and Spike to fight the demons that Mithos had. The only part that was not set in stone was Fred/Illyria's fight with The First.

At four a.m. the next morning the human strike teams lead by Xander, Giles, Wesley, and Gunn attacked in cohesion with the slayer teams lead by Buffy, Faith, Kennedy, Amanda, and Vi. As was decided in their planning session the witches set up in a secluded room with only one entrance Fred/Illyria would stay with them in case The First appeared there when the spell was finished. "Graecia Romam, invocato a nobis di!" Willow started in Latin. (We call on the gods of Greece and Rome)

"Iarraimid ar na déithe na hÉireann, in Albain, sa Bhreatain Bheag, agus an Bhreatain!" Tara continued in Gaelic. (We call on the gods of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and Britain)

"Wǒmen hūyù suǒyǒu zhòng guó shén!" Said one of the coven members in Mandarin Chinese. (We call upon the ancestors of all China)

"Watashitachiha, Nihon no subete no kamigami ni yobidasu!" Added another in Japanese. (We call upon the gods of Japan)

Getting tired of how long this was going to take Dawn suddenly spoke up, her voice booming above the others and shaking the walls of the room, "We call upon the power of every god who has ever walked the Earth, flown above, or crawled beneath. We call up the power of every one of the Powers That Be who sit on their asses and just watch in their comfortable towers! We call upon the power within each of us and within our friends and loved ones!" She continued on suddenly switching to Latin as the power they requested began to flow through their circle, "Sed cum hoc dixero potentiae et passionis, qui est omnium reus. Et dicimus illum statum suum dimittet eum in limbo. Et potestatem dedit ei utimur clauditis mortali in specie!" (We use this power and call forth the one responsible for all suffering. We release him from his state of limbo. We use our granted power and lock him in a mortal form!)

Once she had felt the power begin to fill the room Illyria had taken control of the body she shared with Winifred Burkle. Dawn looked up, being the only member of the circle that had maintained consciousness, and saw the familiar form of Fred, but immediately noted the blue streaked hair, the more commanding posture, the blue coloring in her hair spread down coloring most of her smooth forehead, eyes that became a fierce pale blue and her lips, so pale and blue, that they appeared to belong to someone in the grips of hypothermia, Fred's jeans and t-shirt was replaced with the Old One's red leather bodysuit that armored her fully from the neck down. "Go kick his ass Illyria." Dawn said with a smirk.

The demon goddess nodded as she left the room, but turned back briefly and said, "It's been several millennia since I last laid eyes on The Key, I'm…happy?...that Glorificus was not fully successful in using you." Before Dawn could react Illyria was gone in search of the familiar energy emanating from deep within the compound.

Dawn was a little shocked by Illyria's words, but then shrugged, _Makes sense I guess that she would know The Key. She is the only being as old as I truly am._ She thought as she knelt, resting briefly before stepping over to shut and bolt the door closed. She decided that though they were left alone for now that she had best stay alert just in case, she could rest when it was all over.

Illyria strode through the compound swiftly with a determined purpose in her step. For the most part she avoided the skirmishes going on around her, but helped her allies gain the upper hand when needed. Buffy's squad was just finishing their latest skirmish with a group of Fyarl and Polgara demons when she saw Illyria passing by, she shouted to the follower of Cthulu, "Are the Wiccans OK?" She asked mainly worried for Dawn, Willow, and Tara.

"Yes, The Key…your sister, was still awake when I left. She barricaded the entrance." Illyria replied before continuing on her path.

Buffy took in the information as she took stock of her team. There were a few minor injuries, which she ordered them to dress before they carried on with their mission. The other slayer teams were in much the same state and rapidly gaining ground on the enemy. The human teams however had swept through their goals at lightning speed. "Are the charges all set?" Xander asked as Giles, Wesley, and Gunn reappeared with their teams.

"Yeah man, all the tunnels are taken care of and we took out all the cameras we could find." Gunn answered. "We met very little in the way of resistance by the way." He added.

Xander nodded that he understood, "I'm guessing it's because the majority of their forces are in this cluster of rooms ahead of us. We could just blast our way through them, but I don't wanna risk a major cave-in."

"I think I may have a workable plan…" Wesley said and laid out his thoughts for the other squad leaders.

"It sounds good to me, Xander answered while Giles and Gunn nodded their agreement, "We don't have much time…let's roll!" The construction worker shouted as he rushed with his team to a new covered position as the other three teams provided cover fire.

Once they were secure Giles led his team to a spot further down the hall while Xander's team provided the cover fire. The four squads continued to move in this leap-frog pattern as they move down the hall, clearing side rooms as they come to them. Not completely unexpectedly none of Mitho's men were willing to surrender and fought back hard, but eventually Xander and his friends made it to just outside the main control room where most of their enemy forces were holed up. Thinking quickly Xander, Giles, Wesley, and Gunn gathered the remaining grenades and C4 from the men and women on their teams.

Then Giles and Xander made their way to either side of the large doorway with Giles using what magic he had to shield the two of them from enemy bullets. They looked at each other and gave a nod before tossing their bundles of explosives into the room. The pouches packed with C4, frag grenades, and a few sticks of dynamite landed near the center of the room on the right and left sides respectively. The duo quickly ducked back in their respective corners as shouts of panic emanated from the control room. The incoming fire ceased immediately and after a quick count of three Xander and Giles pressed the triggers on their controls, blowing the bundles of C4 and thereby causing the grenades and dynamite to explode as well. As soon as the explosion had dissipated and the shrapnel had stopped they entered the room along with their squads and were able to quickly subdue the few surviving enemy soldiers.

Illyria finally reached the cavern where she found the now corporeal First Evil waiting for her. She stepped into the massive room while he stood facing away from her. The creature before her was massive, standing around twelve feet tall and rippling with muscles. It looked much the way you would expect a demon to look skin that was uneven and obviously hard and thick, a good natural armor, he had a very humanoid face, although it appeared more skeletal and lacked a human nose and of course it had two horns growing out from above its temples and curling up and around his forehead. "I should thank you I suppose." He spoke, "For giving me a body. This is much more fun than just empowering someone, like that incompetent priest. So slayer…are you ready to die now? I promise to kill you first so you don't have to watch me tear your loved ones apart." The beast turned around and his face turned from a sneer to surprise, "You're not her…it can't be you…I helped imprison you!"

"Guess it didn't take." Illyria replied, some of Fred's influence showing through in the Old One's sarcastic comment, "You must not have been that powerful…Oh right you were never strong enough to beat little ole me on your own, had to bribe your "friends" into helping you imprison me. So, I heard Lucifer and Apollyon finally got sick of your bitchin and kicked you out of Hell. Musta been tough, you being so non-corporeal…how did that happen anyway? Oh yeah I did that to you right before you imprisoned me…so what was it like being ghostly and impotent for so many millennia?"

The First was shaking with rage by this point, every word Fred/Illyria said caused his irritation to build until it finally erupted, "Impotent?! I'll teach you to respect your betters you insolent bitch!" He shouted as he charged forward.

As the colossal being charged toward her Illyria leapt into the air to meet the demon with a knee to his head. The Old One's strike connected solidly, however The First's charge had so much energy behind it that though he was stunned by the blow to his head the force of the two beings colliding also knocked Illyria into the solid rock wall of the cavern. She hit the wall and bounced down, landing easily on her feet, The First was momentarily stunned, but recovered quickly after stumbling a few steps. The colossal beast charged forward again, though a bit more cautiously this time. They traded blows, each of them throwing punches, kicks, knees, and elbows, occasionally a strike would land, but they were too evenly matched to say definitively who had the upper hand.

Beginning to tire of their very competitive brawl The First grabbed and broke a large stalactite from the ceiling of the cavern. He swung his improvised weapon and Illyria easily dodged the swing. The balance of the fight shifted now and Illyria found herself constantly on the defensive, she was able to dodge or block most of the incoming blows, but several still landed. Her natural armor was starting to crack and The First adopted an evil sneer as he saw his opponent start to weaken. With an unexpected powerful swing Illyria was knocked violently against the wall once again, this time causing a large indentation in the rock and a crack that spread from floor to ceiling.

At that moment Buffy stood at the cavern entrance frozen in awe of the size of the creature she assumed to be The First. Seeing Illyria slumped against the wall the beast turned his attention to the slayer and hurled his weapon toward her. Buffy realized what was happening too late to dodge the stone missile when suddenly a portal appeared in time to swallow the projectile. In the same moment a second portal appeared behind The First and he found himself face first on the ground, a victim of his own weapon. Illyria seized the opportunity and rushed over to her prone enemy and took up the stalactite and brought the point down violently on the back of the neck of her opponent. She continued pressing down with all her strength until she finally slowly decapitated The First Evil.

The Old One picked up the severed head of he now deceased First Evil and created another portal before throwing the head through to an unknown location. "We must ensure that his head and body never meet again, as long as they are separated he will remain dead." Illyria said in answer to Buffy's questioning look.

"Where did you send his head?" Asked the slayer.

"Come and see for yourself." Illyria answered motioning the slayer to stand next to her.

Buffy stood next to her ally and peered through the portal to see the head of The First Evil resting in the middle of a large banquet table surrounded several dozen figures of varying race, gender, and species, some wore suits of armor, some wore robes, and some even wore modern dress. She then recognized two figures with beaming smiles on their faces while the others in the room argued and complained over their meal being so rudely interrupted. "That's Brigit and Morrigan…is this…" Buffy trailed off not finishing her question.

"It's the halls of The Powers That Be." Illyria answered, "I'll go and deal with them. You ensure that this entire stronghold is properly destroyed." With that she stepped through the portal, closing it behind her.

Buffy and Faith lead their people back to the room where they'd left the witches. Xander and the other teams had finished placing their explosives throughout the compound and they had collected everything they thought might be useful. When they got the hallway they heard sounds of fighting coming from the area where the witches should be, Faith and Buffy immediately broke into a sprint followed soon by the rest of their friends. When they rounded the corner they saw Oz, Bayamara, and three other members of their pack guarding the witches from what was left of the Polgara demons and even a few Bringers. With the help of the newly arrived slayers they made quick work of the demons. Once the enemy had been defeated Oz called through the door and two more of his pack members un-barricaded the heavy door and stepped out followed by a very tired looking Dawn, who was covered in demon blood and still holding a blood washed sword.

"Dawn was already kicking demon ass when we got here." Bayamara explained, "We could tell she was exhausted though so Oz had her and two of our pack, Jace and Nicolai, barricade themselves in the room."

Buffy was inside the room looking for Willow before Oz's wife finished talking, "Thank you for your help." Giles said, stepping forward to greet Oz and Bayamara.

"Any time, happy to help Giles." Oz replied.

Faith meanwhile walked up to Dawn and gently took the sword from her grasp before tossing it safely aside, "Are you OK baby?" She asked as she checked Dawn for injuries.

"I'm alright Faith I promise, just a little tired." Dawn reassured the dark slayer.

"OK," Faith relented, "Let's go in there and find our girl."

Soon Faith reemerged with Tara cradled in her arms and Dawn leaning against her. Buffy was right behind them carrying Willow in a similar manner. Faith told the slayers to go in and bring the rest of the witches out. Upon seeing that everyone was taken care of Dawn finally relaxed and promptly passed out. She was saved from hitting the ground by Wesley who caught her then picked her up to carry her out with the others to the waiting helicopters. After seeing everyone was loaded on the choppers Xander and Giles were the last to climb aboard. Once they were a safe distance away Xander turned to Gunn, "Blow it." He ordered and the young man pressed a button on a remote, setting off the explosives they had left behind, permanently burying the former enemy stronghold.

Giles turned to their only prisoner, "So…what are we to do with you Mithos?"


	15. Epilogue

**Epilogue**

A couple of weeks had passed since their final battle with The First Evil and the Scoobies were back home in Seattle, with Willow nearby in Portland, relaxing and getting back to their everyday lives. Illyria had met them back at the slayer compound and informed them that she had left The First's head with the Powers That Be and that with its body buried under a mountain there was very little chance (nothing is certain) that they would ever deal with The First again. Angel and his people went back to LA and Kennedy took over Faith's job as Giles' second in command.

The Gang spent the rest of the summer relaxing from supernatural conflict and spent their time working their jobs and having barbeques and exploring their relationships, just like normal people get to all the time. A few days after getting back to Sunnydale Faith and Tara went out, just the two of them. Dawn had said nothing, but was glad that Faith had taken the initiative to further their relationship. By the end of the summer they had worked out the initial rough patches and were working well as a triad.

Early one morning the three of them were lying in bed, exhausted from a long night of passionate love making, silently holding one another. Dawn broke the silence, "Faithy, Tare, I was just thinking…we should get a bigger place. Like maybe a house."

"Do you think we're ready for that sweetie?" Tara asked.

"I think so." Faith answered, "A nice house for me and my wicked witches. A place with plenty of floor space, maybe a basement for a gym, a nice big master bedroom with a king sized bed, a bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub…big enough for three."

"Well when you put it that way…" Tara trailed off as she started kissing Faith deeply, Dawn watched her girlfriends for a minute before joining in, _Guess we aren't getting any sleep tonight._ Though the former Key with a smile.

The next day was their weekly Sunday night dinner at Buffy's house. The whole gang was there, it was also a surprise celebration welcoming Faith into the gang as a full-fledged Scooby member. When Dawn, Tara, and Faith walked in Xander, Anya, Buffy, and Willow were already waiting (choosing not to jump out of hiding and shout surprise since they had learned it was best not to surprise Faith) under a banner that read "Welcome Faith Lehane; Slayer, ass-kicker extraordinaire, and Scooby Gang member!"

Faith, realizing finally that everyone really did accept her as a member of the group and not just because she was with Tara and Dawn, started to tear up, but refused to let go in front of everyone. She had let herself cry several times in front of her girlfriends as she revealed bit of her past to them, but she was not ready to be quite so free with her emotions around all the others just yet. "We know it's all water under the bridge now, and that both sides made mistakes, but we're sorry that it took this long to let you into the group Faith." Said Buffy.

"Yeah," Xander added, "The only thing I have to say is I have to hope that all that was necessary to bring us to where we all are now, cause otherwise I'd be really depressed about it."

"Regardless of all that happened in the past between all of us…this is way it should have been back then." Willow said as she hugged Faith.

The stubborn formerly evil slayer hugged the red head back as a rogue tear fell from her eye. Anya broke the somber moment, as seemed to be her gift, "Hey, now that all that mushy shit is over can we eat? Cause I'm fucking hungry!"

They all shared a laugh as the mood instantly lightened, _I wonder if she intends for people to think of her as tactless and imbecilic?_ Thought Tara, _Cause what I see is a 1200+ year old ex-demon who knows how to affect the emotions of a crowd. She's definitely a lot more intelligent and wiser than she lets on…much like Faith._

"By the way guys, Giles called earlier. It seem that Mithos hung himself in that holding cell he was being kept in. The coven was called in to ensure it was really him and…well, we won't have to worry about him anymore." Buffy announced as they sat down.

"I'm actually kinda glad it happened that way. At least none of you slayers had to kill him…I know that affects guys, a lot." Dawn commented taking Faith's hand in her own while Tara placed her hand on the Bostonian slayer's knee.

Later on that evening Buffy spoke up over the idle conversation, "Guys…I have a bit of an announcement to make, I'm moving in with Willow in Portland. So Faith, you're gonna be the slayer in charge here, but if you guys need me I'll be just a few hours away."

When Buffy finished talking everyone aside from Anya and Dawn put a twenty dollar bill on the table. Anya scooped up the bills and divided the money evenly between herself and Dawn. "Dammit you guys win again!" Tara exclaimed before explaining to Buffy, "We made another bet, how long after we get back before you and Willow move in together. Dawn and Anya said less than a month."

"Wow guess this is the night for announcements…Anya and I were asked by Giles to run a slayer training facility in Salt Lake City. We decided to take the opportunity and I was planning on asking Tara to take over my company here." Xander said Tara just nodded glad that she would get to make use of her business degree after all.

Anya continued, "Also I'm going to keep the Magic Box II open and I was hoping you'd like to run it Dawn."

Dawn was speechless before answering, "Of course, I'd be happy to run your store."

"Wow…so I just get here to be part of the group and now everyone's leaving?" Faith asked looking a bit sad.

"Hey sweetie it's not that bad, Buffy and Willow are gonna be in Portland. That's only a few hours away." Tara reassured her.

"Yep and Salt Lake City's only about twelve hours away. So Anya and I might not make the weekly dinner, but we will come up at least once a month, but hopefully more often." Xander added.

"Well I might as well add to the announcement games," Dawn said, "We're thinking of maybe buying a house."

The group of friends continued to talk into the night, about moving arrangements, Buffy went over the demon hot-spots of Seattle and Anya gave faith the numbers of some of her contacts, they ended up reminiscing about their pasts, with Dawn and Faith telling the others about the memories they shared of pre-Sunnydale that, though they were fake Faith cherished because she wondered how her life might have changed had she really met Dawn Summers in Boston. The dark slayer mostly sat back and listened, watching her allies and now re-established friends interact with one another, chiming in whenever they mentioned one of the few good times of her Sunnydale experience. _Things are gonna be changing for me again, most likely for the better. Funny that I'm not scared…nervous as hell, but not scared this time. Probably because of these two beautiful witches of mine. With them in my life I feel I can take on anything._

For the first time in her twenty-one years Faith felt she had found where she belonged. And having found it she knew she would die before she gave it up again.

**The End**

**A/N:** I know it's a little short, but this felt right. It's time to bring this story to a close and work on my other projects. I do wanna write a sequel for this, but I have other stories that are a bit higher on my list first. Thank you to those who've followed this story and read my psychotic ramblings. And to those who left reviews I doubly thank you.


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